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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28599000">Until Dawn Breaks</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Authorship/pseuds/Authorship'>Authorship</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>I hope you'll reach those places [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Naruto</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Akatsuki - Freeform, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, BAMF Mikoto, BAMF Shisui, Clan Politics, F/F, F/M, Gen, Inoichi is stressed from a distance, Kirigakure | Hidden Mist Village, Konohagakure | Hidden Leaf Village, Kumogakure | Hidden Cloud Village, M/M, Multi, Orphan Solidarity, Other, Shisui goes on a joyride like anyone with a repressed childhood, Social revolution, Time Travel, everyone with Shisui: i just think he's neat, true OTP is Shisui/Therapy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 07:33:25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>40,319</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28599000</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Authorship/pseuds/Authorship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>"I sat there<br/>Eyes closed<br/>Wind at war with my hair<br/>Allowing the sand to shift all around me<br/>I inhaled the sun and sea-kissed air<br/>And exhale things held past their time<br/>There’s just something about this place<br/>That feels so free"<br/>- Elowen Grey. </p><p> </p><p>Shisui had succeeded, destroying the man who responsible for his death, in every way possible. Who had caused so much suffering... more than anyone could have foreseen. </p><p>(He gasped for air, throat parched and lips chapped and-)</p><p>But now came the hardest part; learning to live again.</p><p>(The ground felt as distant as the dim twinkle of stars scattered across the night sky.)</p><p>All was still.</p><p>(The air, the only thing surrounding him, felt stretched in his lungs, whipped his clothes and hair taunt from his skin, and streamed tears from his eyes.)</p><p>And then it wasn't.</p><p> </p><p>(Part Two of a series - please read Part One, No Tomorrow, before this one)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Uchiha Shisui/?</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>I hope you'll reach those places [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2031988</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>195</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>459</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>A Collection of Beloved Inserts, tobirama's archives</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Prologue: Unfamiliar, Far Away Places</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The peace was interrupted by the sharp snap of silken wings coming in to land on the branch a little above his head.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Shisui, half-asleep in the cradle of the tree’s canopy, didn’t so much as twitch. Sweat, from the heat and the earlier exercise, tickled the back of his neck as it slowly trailed its way beneath his thin shirt. His feet were bare, swinging limply in the faint breeze.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Above his head, the clacker of Crow interrupted the quiet symphony of the cicadas.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Summoner, We, the Crows, have been in Conclave and discussed the issue you petitioned to us."</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How majestic</span>
  <em>
    <span>, he smiled. "What’s the verdict, Akira?" Shisui squinted open one eye and flicked the crow a glance out of the corner of his vision. His ebony feathers glimmered in the dappled golden light filtered through the leaves surrounding them. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The Summon’s chest puffed up with all due importance and he crooked his head to peer at the Jounin with one, shiny eye. "Myself and Kana will accompany you on your Journey. The others shall follow our suit."</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Good.</span>
  <em>
    <span> He’d hate to have to go alone, especially in the current climate. Shisui’s teeth flashed, equal parts pleased and rueful. "I’m honoured."</span>
  </em>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>Six months earlier…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui’s eyes snapped open, Sharingan-red glaring into the shadows of his room. His lungs heaved for air, heart thundering in the aftermath of nightmares.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sweat dampened his skin, making his thin sleep-shirt cling as he shifted restlessly in the tangle of his sheets. For a long moment, he panted up at the ceiling.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It would be dawn soon.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His eyes slipped closed, exhausted even as true rest evaded him. His throat bobbed, painful.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But, for now, the darkness persisted.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Sweep</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>"Close your eyes and turn your face into the wind.<br/>Feel it sweep along your skin in an invisible ocean of exultation.<br/>Suddenly, you know you are alive."<br/>- Vera Nazarian</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It was warm.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Warm and quiet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In the distance, there was the comforting clatter and clamour of people going about their lives, the low whistle of the high winds whirling through the latched window. The thump of feet upon the cobblestone streets and throughout the levels of the building above and below.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was comfortable?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Comfortable? What do you feel?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The soft, smooth pressed of the leather beneath him. The soles of his sandals press into the edge at little. It feels...familiar. Safe. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Yes, you're safe here. Now, what can you smell?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everything.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Let's start small, what do you like smelling the most?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The figs… the tea I drank… everything's been cleaned, I can smell the spray. Moist dirt, sensei waters his plants… warm, fresh paper from the printer… old paper from the files… </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Good. What does your room smell like?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui sucked in a careful breath, the image slowly unfolding behind his closed lids. Weapon oil and… limescale. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>From what?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>From the kettle and the frame of the shower stall.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>You use the kettle a lot</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>I drink tea when I can't sleep.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>How often is that?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Every night.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>How do you feel when you can't sleep?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tired. Resigned. He swallowed, moving his tongue to rest differently behind his teeth. Scared.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>What are you scared of?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That I'm dreaming. That I'll never feel better.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>What makes you think you're dreaming?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui wasn't sure. He thought about it for a long moment, chasing the clouds of fear and uncertainty that tainted his mind, looking for the source – the smoke's fire – but every answer seemed to slip from his grasp.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sensing his struggle, Inoichi tried a different route, “What do you dream of?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui's next breath was ragged, “The water.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Where are you?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Under it,” He gasped, “It's filling my mouth. It's – ”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A hand rested, gentle and warm but steadying, on his cheek. Behind his lids, his eyes flickered rapidly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You can breathe,” The older man reminded him sternly, “There is no water here, you can breathe.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He sucked in deep lungfuls, chest rising and falling deliberately but without that frantic pace. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he seemed calm, Inoichi continued, “Are you alone?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui shook his head, neck propped against the natural curve of the fainting sofa. “There's a man on the cliff,” His throat worked convulsively, grief twisting his mouth, “He's watching.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you know who it is?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The fluttering of his lowered lashes dampened with unshed tears, “I'm screaming for him but I can't </span>
  <em>
    <span>swim</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You can see?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The tears spilled over, trailing down into the hair at his temples. Subconsciously, Inoichi's thumb, hand still pressed to the Uchiha's cheek, trailed across to wipe the delicate skin beneath his eyes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was a testament to how far Shisui had come these past two months that the move didn't elicit a reaction.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"The water is dragging me down- </span>
  <em>
    <span>Naka-gawa wants to kill me</span>
  </em>
  <span>!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The session was derailing; Inoichi tapped his fingers along the curved cheekbone under his hand. "You’re safe, you’re dry – come back, Shisui-kun. That's enough for today."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Like a broken hypnotic trance, Shisui's eyes snapped open, staring blankly at the pale ceiling directly above him before following the line of Inoichi's arm to stare at his face. Fear lingered in the crumple of his brow, the twist of his mouth.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Easy… how are you feeling?" Inoichi hummed, carefully pulling his hand back to thread his fingers together in his lap. "You were much clearer today."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...Okay," Shisui hedged, slowly easing himself upright. The leather creaked quietly beneath him. "It felt more like a memory – I mean, it's obviously a memory – but they usually feel much more… inescapable. Real. This one… I could kind of remember it wasn't actually happening."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi tilted his head, ponytail sliding over his shoulder with the motion. "Lucid. When you're asleep and aware you're dreaming."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah," The Uchiha nodded absently, rubbing his eyes with the heel of his palm. Neither man needed to comment upon the tears that dampened the area. "What time is it?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi glanced at his wristwatch. "The memory walk-through lasted just over twenty minutes," His aqua eyes were watchful, "You took a while to slip into it, is everything okay?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui sighed leaning back on the slope of the couch and twisted to put his sandals back on the floor. Beyond the windows opposite, the view was muffled by the gentle snowfall that had speckled the landscape for over a week now. They would have a white New Years, if the rains didn't come. "I'm just feeling a little restless."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi, who had stood to click the kettle back on, paused measuring out the tea leaves for the strainer. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You're on medical leave," He pointed out, bemused, "You don't have a mission coming up until after January."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui glared mockingly for a moment at the space between his sensei's shoulders, "I think that </span>
  <em>
    <span>might</span>
  </em>
  <span> be the issue."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi, the one who had signed the damned advisory form, didn't even blink, pouring their drinks with a musing hum. "Well, the dreams seemed to have progressed from reliving the events themselves; a subconscious fear of water –"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't think it’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>that </span>
  </em>
  <span>subconscious," Shisui muttered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi corrected him, barely breaking stride, "You don't </span>
  <em>
    <span>actually</span>
  </em>
  <span>, actively, believe that the Naka river is sentient and wants to kill you, and this fear is therefore deemed subconscious – </span>
  <em>
    <span>this</span>
  </em>
  <span>," He continued, "Is something that you can work on. You have to </span>
  <em>
    <span>convince</span>
  </em>
  <span> your own mind that you </span>
  <em>
    <span>can</span>
  </em>
  <span> beat the water. Phobia therapy will be our next step, in the new year."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui neglected to respond that he’d been forcing himself to walk into the Naka mere days after he woke from drowning. He didn't think the blonde would be terribly impressed with his 'initiative'. At least now he knew for sure that Tenzo hadn't snitched after his catastrophic attempt to learn the Water Breath jutsu. However, something else his sensei had said caught the Uchiha’s attention. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Wait – new </span>
  <em>
    <span>year</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" His tone dripped disbelief, "Why wait that long? It’s Sunday, we can go out –"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Right now?" Inoichi passed him his tea with an unimpressed quirk to his brow. "I don't think so. We want you to feel as comfortable in the water as possible, not lose toes."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I’m Fire-natured," Shisui pointed out reasonably, burning his tongue on the tea when he risked a sip.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"We’ll start with a bath next week," Inoichi’s tone was final.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui relented, knowing better than to push the man who could delay his return to duty. Again. "Not the onsen?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi snorted, making his way around the windows to his desk and clicking the lamp there on. It was barely half two but the days were so short this time of year. The difference was felt immediately, the soft yellow glow of the lamp chasing at the grey filter of the snowy light outside. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I refuse to be banned from the spa if things get tricky in such a public spot. So, no. We have a perfectly functioning bathtub at home."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui bit the inside of his cheek at the ease of the gesture. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Right," He cleared his throat, "Do you have any more appointments after this?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi’s reply was distant, mind scattered away as he filled in his therapy logbook, hunched over his desk with the close light making his dark blonde hair glint like burnished gold. "Hm? Oh, I cleared the afternoon for you."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Oh.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui took a huge swing of his tea, eyes watering at the temperature, in an attempt not to think about the thoughtfulness behind the gesture. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You’re free then," He coughed, "For the rest of the day, I mean."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi did glance up then, pen poised just above the page. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yes," He agreed slowly, "Why?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No reason," Shisui smiled innocently, "It’s just it’s a Sunday and Sora-sama closes up the shop around three in December. Maybe you should… I don't know." He shrugged his shoulders, hands tucked into the pockets of his purple vest. "Go out for dinner. The two of you."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi stared at him for a while longer, "Are you volunteering to babysit?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui swallowed a laugh, lips pressed together and dimples carving into his cheeks. "I don't think she’d appreciate the phrasing – maybe ‘sleepover’ or ‘no parent party.’ But," His face relaxed into a warm smile, "Yes. I’ll babysit and house-watch and whatever else needs handled for a while. Take yourselves out for a nice meal before everywhere gets rammed for the holidays."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi’s smile was slow-growing, tinted with laughter and incredulity at Shisui’s cheek, but he eventually nodded, "You have yourself a deal."</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>"What do you </span>
  <em>
    <span>mean</span>
  </em>
  <span> you’re leaving me at </span>
  <em>
    <span>home</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" Ino’s childish voice was filled with affront, "I want to go out too! We never have dinner anywhere but here and with the Akimichi, I don’t –"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sora was standing in the hallway mirror, hurriedly brushing her hair into some semblance of order after a day tackling poinsettia in the greenhouses. When she spoke, she sounded caught between wanting to laugh and knowing it would make her daughter even more incensed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Don’t you want Kaa-chan to have a nice date with your Tou-san? You said my dress was pretty; what if your Tou-san takes me dancing?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui hid a smile in the curve of his hand, leaning on the kitchen countertop. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I want to dance too! And that was </span>
  <em>
    <span>before</span>
  </em>
  <span> I knew I was staying </span>
  <em>
    <span>heeeeere</span>
  </em>
  <span>!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ino had run straight upstairs after coming back from the Haruno’s house, demanding her mother let her pick whatever she was wearing out to dinner. Inoichi, who had told her only that 'they were going out for dinner' before his daughter had bolted for the stairs, had looked a little shell-shocked when he’d rejoined Shisui in his office. Ino didn't know Shisui was here and the Uchiha had to wonder that the blonde thought her parents would seriously consider leaving her home alone. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He raised his voice to be clearly heard in the hall. "I’ll dance with you Ino-chan, so long as you promise to twirl me plenty."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The corridor went very quiet, very quickly before, in a sudden rustle of movement, Ino’s slap-slap of bare feet carried her into the kitchen. She was still flushed from her snow day with Sakura, red cheeks even brighter against her pale features and the mint green of her woolly jumper. Shisui smiled wider at the pink bunny worked into the front of it. "Are we all going out dancing together?" She demanded, her mulish mood replaced by glee.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui feigned thoughtfulness, casting a glance at the shopping bag he’d intentionally placed on the sideboard. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I don't know," He hissed a rueful breath through his teeth, "It looks a little cold out for me, I thought you and I could have a really cool sleepover," He lowered his voice to a whisper that had Ino trotting closer, "Maybe even some… hot chocolate?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ino eyed the shopping bag with renewed interest and impetuously folded her arms. "Can I paint your nails?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fingers and toes," Shisui placed a hand over his heart. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Deal!" The nine-year old snapped up, twirling around towards where her parents were speaking in hushed tones near the front door. She spread her arms like she was shepherding sheep from the middle of the road. "You can go now!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi didn't move, wrapping an arm around Sora’s waist when she leant up to loop his scarf around his neck for him, "I thought you didn't want to be left behind?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ino’s voice belied her scowl. "Why are you arguing? This is what you wanted, Tou-san."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui snorted his coffee. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ah," Inoichi rocked back on his heels. "Right you are, little tyrant. Your Kaa-chan and I will be back before ten, in time to say goodnight. Listen to Shisui-kun, although I doubt I have to tell you that…"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"And Nii-san will listen to me too." Ino nodded impatiently, reaching out to tug on her mother’s coat as if to straighten it. "I know how teamwork </span>
  <em>
    <span>works</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Tou-san."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi sounded exhausted. "Right. Perfect."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sora saved him, opening the door and gesturing for her husband to step outside first. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Goodnight, Ino-chan," She raised her voice unnecessarily, "We'll see you later, Shisui-kun!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui popped his head around the kitchen door to wave them off. "Have fun, Sora-sama, sensei."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You too!" The brunette smiled warmly, gratefully, before stepping out after her husband. The door slammed shut behind them, cutting off the sounds of the wind. Flurries of snowflakes, the weather having continued to worsen as the evening continued, already melted over the doorstep. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ino immediately turned towards the Jounin, hands on hips and barefeet pale against the hardwood floor, "First things first! You get blankets and I’ll get the supplies!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui’s eyebrows jumped upwards, a curious smile curling his lips, "Don’t you want dinner first? And get some socks on, you hate being sick."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ino grinned, gummy with the tooth missing in her front row, "That’s what the snacks are for."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Forty minutes later, after Shisui had argued that they couldn't eat crap for dinner and Ino had parried back that she didn't want his ugly omelettes again, Shisui was sheepishly accepting the box of takeaway from a beleaguered shadow clone. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In the living room, they had spent the waiting time setting up ‘camp’ a reasonable distance from the fireplace. When Shisui came through with the food, Ino was carefully counting all the sweets into their respective bowls; she had a thing about people getting to eat more than her or not getting their fair share, so this was her solution. Shisui didn’t particularly care – Sasuke still licked his fingers too much when he had a snack and bowl rummaging wasn't something to think too hard over after seeing that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They spent the evening painting each other’s nails; Ino, who had green thumbs and big toes with all others a rich, aubergine purple,  was practiced from learning from Sakura and Shisui, who had gone for a nice sky blue on all, had steady hands. Once they were deemed dry and unable to be ruined, Ino moved them on to playing games. Hide-and-seek was interesting because Shisui had to ignore every muffled giggle Ino breathed from behind the sofa (but it was much more entertaining running around the house on the ceiling above Ino's head when it was her turn). Cat’s cradle was great because Ino’s elastic was huge and she was very, very good with her dexterity exercises at the academy. The Yamanaka’s didn't have a TV but they had a small music player and a pitiful music selection, one of Sora’s that she sometimes played when she was working in the evenings and a few that Ino had bought herself to dance around to. Shisui didn't really pay attention to it but it was nice enough in the background.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Outside the darkening windows, the storm picked up into a full-on blizzard, the kind Shisui hadn't seen in Konoha since he was a good ten years younger. The snow built up in the empty window-boxes, sticking around the frames of the panes. Ino, so used to the warmth of Fire Country, was excited to go out in it again tomorrow. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finally, after three cups of hot chocolate – too many, but Shisui couldn’t begrudge her – and after wearing herself out all day in the snow and again playing games after dinner, Ino slumped over amidst the heaped blankets.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tossing down his cards – he was relieved, Ino was far too good a poker for a child her age, Shisui hadn't learned to shark until he was preteen – Shisui stepped over the cushion they’d been using as their card table, and carefully scooped her up.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Not nearly as asleep as she looked, the blonde immediately looped an arm around his neck. "...Nii-san," she slurred drowsily.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hmm?" Shisui replied with half an ear, navigating the mess of the living room and heading towards the stairs. Her fingers found his Uzushio earrings again. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was silent for a while, barely awake as Shisui ushered her into the bathroom to brush her teeth - he'd be considered criminally negligent if he didn't see to it, especially after giving her so much sugar - and let her freshen up. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She took two clumsy steps into the hallway towards him after using the toilet and he had to scoop her up. No falling on her face was allowed at this hour.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Chin hooked over his shoulder, she seemed to remember whatever had bugged her earlier. "I forgot to ask…"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ask what, imouto?" Shisui nudged open her bedroom door with his foot and flicked the light off with his elbow. In the darkness, he slowly set her down on her bed, grateful that she’d thought to get dressed in her pyjamas after dinner, and tugged her hands free from his neck.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her eyes were nearly closed, just a slither of aqua visible, but she seemed determined to say her piece. Speaking seemed to take extraordinary effort. "Are you feeling better?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The audible worry in her little voice had Shisui sitting down on the edge of her bed, genuinely lost for words.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>She...noticed?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Of course, she had – she was such a sensitive, enquiring child and training to be a shinobi to boot. But still, the realisation was galling… what else had she seen?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His own eyes fluttered over her little face, the sleepy part of her mouth and the childish fullness of her cheeks. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He smoothed her hair back from her forehead and left his hand there. "What do you mean?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ino sighed, deep and tired, and tugged her blanket up a little more. When she replied, she carefully enunciated every sound to make sure she was understood. "You’ve been seeing Tou-san, which means you’re getting better… but do you need me to fight someone? I'll win, I promise."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He ruthlessly smothered that mental image without second thought.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Imouto," He nearly laughed, feeling oddly hysterical, "You can’t fight everything, you know."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She squinted through her drowsiness, somehow still managing incredulity even moments from sleep. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He laughed quietly this time, helplessly fond.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I’ll be okay," He reassured her. Then, knowing he shouldn't keep her up if her body was ready for sleep, he cleared his throat before leaning in to press a kiss to her forehead. She smelled of skin and clean hair and the hot chocolate she’d enjoyed earlier. "I’ve got you, haven't I?" He leaned back a little more. "Who could be sad with that, eh?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With a hum of apparent agreement, Ino’s breathing finally evened out. Her hands fell from her blanket to lie slack by her sides and Shisui immediately rose and left, shutting the door behind him with a soft click.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The house was still brightly lit and, downstairs, he needed to clean up the pillow fort, dishes and discarded games before Inoichi and Sora returned. It was just before ten, so he didn't have too long. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He scrubbed a hand over his face, the other bracing on the newel-post at the top of the stairs, and sighed too quietly to wake the little girl sleeping on the other side of the door, "Kid, you’re way too much for my heart."</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>……………………………………………………</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In the two months since Danzo had died and both Mikoto and Shisui had been… promoted, Shisui had managed to carve himself out a new, semi-regular routine.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In the average week, Shisui spent most days ferrying himself between the Uchiha and the Sandaime… which boiled down to feeling like he’d been tricked into a serious ‘don’t shoot the messenger’ situation; he could Shunshin back and forth several times a day to express sentiments of obstinate refusal followed immediately by outrageous demands. He wondered, sometimes, if this was how the third-party monk had felt when he’d been asked to mediate the Senju-Uchiha peace treaty. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Thursday was usually the day he managed to sneak off to T&amp;I, catching up with Inoichi’s stubbornly ongoing investigation; even after months of digging, so many questions were still unanswered and many of them were things the ROOT survivors were unable to help with. Torune and Fū, both of whom had been both senior operatives and were willing to help, could shed no light on Danzo’s actions beyond Konoha’s boundaries, except regarding missions that Inoichi had already unearthed. When Danzo left the village alone… that was where the most damage was potentially done. And that was where they were </span>
  <em>
    <span>truly</span>
  </em>
  <span> in the dark. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>On Friday afternoons, Shisui reported the week's findings to Boar. On the weekend, without a mission rota to spice up his day-to-day, Shisui was left training furiously. Officially benched, he’d signed up for 'Rookie Duty' and beat every single ANBU-hopeful black and blue. The frustration never seemed to ebb, an itch he couldn't scratch, even if his taijutsu endurance had increased by leaps and bounds with so many back to back matches.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>At the end of his rope, Shisui went to find Maito Gai.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As almost the entirety of Konoha knew, Gai trained exclusively at TG12 and had done so since he made Chuunin and had earned the classification code to book it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d then proceeded to book it. Every day. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For the past ten years. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(He booked ahead of schedule so it was only when the man received a mission that a few people were able to make use of it instead.)</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The reason why most of Konoha – civilians included – knew where Gai trained wasn’t because of this annoying-but-now-resigned discrepancy on the training ground availability list posted in the Chuunin and Jounin Lounges. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was because of the noise.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(Gai could never be described as 'quiet' even if he contracted tonsillitis and lost his voice.)</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>TG12 was deciduous woodland, like most of Konoha, with a smattering of clearings of various sizes scattered across the plot. There was nothing particularly unique or advantageous about the area but, for whatever reason, Gai had claimed the place as his own.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui wasn't particularly close to the older Jounin, despite their mutual friend in Kakashi, because they simply didn't run in the same circles. Shisui, and ANBU operatives in general, tended to stick to their Squads and families for socialisation, although he'd picked up a few casual acquaintances in the Department. Gai, as a Daylight Jounin who'd never dipped into Black Ops, was friends with Kurenai and Aoba and Ebitsu. Oh, he was friends with Genma – Genin teammates – and he knew Raidou – attached to Gen's hip – and he was nice enough to greet Shisui and Tenzo if they bumped into each other. But not </span>
  <em>
    <span>friends</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui was going out on a limb here, counting on Gai's buoyant personality and natural generosity to agree. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He crossed the boundary from the footpath and carefully reached out with his core to feel for a signature amongst the trees. It was a Monday, the twenty-fourth to be exact, and he probably should have checked in with the Elders' nigh-on daily meetings but… just the thought of sitting and listening to their curses and arguments… he felt like vibrating out of his own skin. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Training it was, then.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai's flicker of chakra had stayed in one place for a good while; he was obviously training in the largest clearing. Shisui broke into a jog and leapt into the canopy, not wasting any time hesitating although his stomach still clenched with awkwardness. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai, a damned good Jounin, naturally heard him coming. (Shisui wasn't exactly trying to go unnoticed.)</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was doing push-ups on his hands on a small log stump, to keep clear of the snowfall, and he didn't even pause when Shisui leapt down from the branches and managed a greeting.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Gai-san!" The Uchiha called, condensation puffing visibly from every breath. He nervously smoothed down his blue hat, a few curls peeking out over his forehead, even though the branches hadn't touched him. "Good morning."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Konoha's Sublime Green Beast didn't so much as break his tempo, tilting his flushed face forwards to beam at Shisui upside down. His woolly orange hat had fallen off at some point. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shisui-san, how wonderful to see you on such a magnificent morn! Have you come in search of my eternal rival, your beloved senpai?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The nerves faded in the face of Gai's easiness, biting the inside of his cheek to repress a chuckle at Kakashi's persistent nickname. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No, no," He shook his head and stopped about a meter from the log, "I actually came to talk to you, if you've got a moment."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"By all means!" Gai grinned, teeth as glaringly white as the snow surrounding them. "What endeavour may I assist you with, Shisui-san?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Uchiha plucked up his courage. At worse, he'd be politely brushed off. Or was the worst-case scenario that he'd be enlisted to run laps of the village on his hands at dawn? He couldn't remember. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Do you want to train together?" He blurted and then mentally face-palmed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai was so surprised he actually paused his reps, "Train together?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui floundered. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well – yeah," He replied lamely, "I'm on med-leave still and I need… an edge. I thought, hey! Who better to help kick me up a gear? So," He shrugged helplessly, "Here I am. How about it?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Daylight Jounin bounded upright in a blur of emerald and orange, arms thrust out and Shisui reacted on instinct –</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He leapt backwards to the clearing's edge, Sharingan spinning madly through the flurry of stirred-up snow, and gently rested on hand on the pommel of his Kamu-tantō*. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai, arms still outstretched but his joyous embrace thwarted, recovered quickly. A smirk twisted his smile sideways. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, I see, my Daring Compatriot –" Oh </span>
  <em>
    <span>no</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he could hear the </span>
  <em>
    <span>capitalisation,</span>
  </em>
  <span> “– You wish to start immediately? I accept your proposal and, by familiarising myself with the Sharingan fighting style, I may one day best my Eternal Rival!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And then he launched himself across the snow.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai, it seemed, knew exactly what he wanted to focus on for Shisui. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Uchiha wondered if he was that transparent or if Gai had actually planned for these potential training matches in his free time. Both were unnervingly plausible. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They bypassed any warming-up flexibility or strength training that might have been required of a lesser opponent – Shisui had trained with Itachi since the younger had begun to learn and Gai was self-aware enough to pull his punches when faced with other shinobi – and threw themselves straight into it with all due enthusiasm. Which, considering the two of them, was… a lot.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They were frank about their weaknesses and goals; productivity in a new partnership required a good degree of transparency. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai wanted to improve his already impressive speed and perfect his unique style against the Sharingan's ability to recognise patterns and the micro-telegraphing of movements.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui wanted to increase his strength and fluidity, swapping between kenjutsu and taijutsu with greater finesse.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He...also wanted to learn to fight with compromised senses.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai, who immediately jumped on that bandwagon, didn't even question why. He was too busy proclaiming the intelligence of such a regime and swearing that he would devote himself to their shared goal (or suffer climbing the Hokage monument with no chakra and just his bare hands).</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui, who usually didn't have enough time when he trained to gather a sweat with the usual fitness sets, found himself gasping for breath every single day. Thankfully for his ego, Gai was in much the same boat.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They met each day at five AM sharp and trained until lunchtime, when Shisui would wobble back to whichever home was closest and clean up. Then, in the afternoon, he rushed around catching up on the day's work. No-one made a fuss about the new shift to his schedule – they were shinobi, after all. Stability was mainly a convenience.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai, it also became quickly apparent, was incurably chatty. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He talked constantly, from commenting on the splendour of the weather (it snowed every day so far, dark as midnight in the early hours) to the smallest details of Shisui's technique ("Your wrist alignment when you deflect is superb, Shisui-san!") and all without interruption from their activities. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui wondered, by Day Three, if Gai just </span>
  <em>
    <span>liked</span>
  </em>
  <span> talking. Maybe, it was what happened when you were friends with Kakashi from a young age. On Shisui's part, spending extended time with the Hatake made him </span>
  <em>
    <span>quieter</span>
  </em>
  <span>, content to let the silence stretch and communication increasingly reduced to non-verbal tells</span>
  <em>
    <span>.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Maybe Gai had learned early on how to hold a conversation with a silent partner; he couldn't imagine Kakashi drumming up the energy to engage so thoroughly. Which was probably where the Daylight Jounin had learned to roll with anything and everything.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai was kind of irrepressible like that.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui had always vaguely liked Gai. He was loud and more than a little ridiculous but Shisui wasn't exactly typical himself and Gai's eccentricities were much more entertaining and </span>
  <em>
    <span>nicer</span>
  </em>
  <span>, dammit, than most veterans. He was surprisingly sensitive too.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>However, after a whole week of training, a solid seven hours of hardcore one-on-one without a hint of aggravation or reluctance, Shisui was inclined to think of the man as his newest friend. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Gai-san," He kicked back off a tree trunk to avoid a sweeping kick at his ankles, "Thanks again for taking the time to train with me!" He'd not been pushed like this in </span>
  <em>
    <span>years</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The older Jounin beamed brighter than the sun, his warmer skin-tone only extrapolating the effect. He weaved through Shisui's counterattack with the smallest frown of concentration. That faint grimace was its own acknowledgment of Shisui's skill, "Why, Compatriot, I am honoured by your dazzling companionship! Our Youth will blaze through every pore!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui barked a laugh at the typical response and was kicked solidly in the gut for it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Their new 'partnership,' as Gai liked to call it, did not pass unnoticed by those around them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Kakashi was the first to know. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Where other people might have simply gone up to one of them and asked the question, Kakashi liked to do things… in his own way. Which was, naturally, convoluted and sideways to everyone but him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After all, why communicate when you could spy?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In hindsight, Kakashi probably should have saved himself a headache and asked Shisui when he saw him in the dorm common room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui, being given a crash-course in Gai's very special way of wrapping his knuckles to optimise strength and force (and reducing pain), had been immediately aware when a familiar signature skirted close by and then loitered in a tree with a good vantage point of their training. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai, lacking sensing abilities but with an extremely precise Kakashi-awareness, noticed about half a minute later.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"My dearest Rival!" The taijutsu master bellowed, dangerously close to Shisui's ear. He swung an arm up and started waving furiously, as if Kakashi hadn't specifically chosen that spot to watch without detection. "It is a magnificent morning when you come in search of a match!" Then, in an aside to Shisui that was louder than most people's arguments; "I have bested my Eternal Rival by one point for over a week now! My advantage will surely grow with persistence!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui flexed his newly wrapped fingers, pleased, and grinned a tad evilly in his Taichou's direction. The man hadn't had the sense to run, "I'm sure it will, Gai-san. In fact, I'll referee right now."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Later, when Shisui was back in the ANBU quarters after showering, Kakashi cornered him in the corridor. His fluffy hair was soaked, slicked close to his scalp and his uniform was no better. Across his face, his Hatake mask clung wetly to his nose; Shisui wondered how he hadn't suffocated.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I hope you're happy," He grouched and shamelessly snatched the hot coffee from his subordinate's hands.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui let him take it without fuss, far too busy admiring Gai's work. "Lost the snowball contest, did you?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Kakashi's sole eye narrowed, "You'd know if you'd stuck around like you said you would, </span>
  <em>
    <span>referee."</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui tried and failed to swallow a laugh. "Hey now, I wasn't gonna loiter when those kids showed up. Ino taught me that. It's what you get for sneaking."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What's this about sneaking around?" Genma sauntered over with a sly grin, "Those are interesting words to be throwing around."</span>
</p><p> </p><p><span>The brunette's hair was in another ponytail today, his lean form dressed in comfortable clothes that screamed 'I am doing absolutely nothing today and you can't stop me'. Shisui wondered what the point was in a ridiculously fluffy sweater if it was cropped to halfway up your midriff. Genma's skin was scattered with a handful of moles or, as he liked to call them, '</span><em><span>beauty spots'.</span></em> <em><span>What's wrong with a hoodie?</span></em></p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shisui and Gai," Kakashi immediately snitched.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui threw up his hands. "Oh, come </span>
  <em>
    <span>on."</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Unrepentant, and with another pitifully wet sniff, Kakashi walked away with Shisui's coffee.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Genma's grin could only be called lecherous, "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Gai</span>
  </em>
  <span>? Shisui, I didn't know you had a thing for my teammate…"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui made a low, annoyed sound in the back of his throat and turned towards the coffee pot for a second attempt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>No</span>
  </em>
  <span>," He shut that down quickly, "Gai is nice –" He wasn't gonna do the man the insult of overreacting to that idea, and certainly not in front of Mom-friend-Genma. "– But I just asked him to train with me. I've been going stir crazy and sensei said he won't lift the bench until January at the earliest."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Genma, in a rare show of tactfulness (towards Gai's feelings, not Shisui's, of course), actually left well-enough alone. "So you thought you'd...what? Kill yourself breaking rocks with your face?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The k-word didn't even make him flinch anymore. That was progress, right?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Gai is enthusiastic but I guess I need that right now. And he's kind of an expert at pushing yourself without injury; that guy sets impossible goals, does another challenge when he doesn't meet that target, and yet can keep going every single day? I mean," Shisui turned towards the brunette with an incredulous expression. "Have you ever heard of Gai having a burn-out? Fuck, have you ever known him to need to check into the hospital for anything not accident or mission related?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Genma's expression turned thoughtful before, with dawning comprehension, bewildered. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No." He barked a laugh and nicked Shisui's second coffee. "No, I haven't. That crazy son of a bitch."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui gestured at the coffee as if to say 'really?' The assassin ignored him. Shisui impatiently grabbed another cup for a third attempt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So you're hoping to do something similar?" Genma asked, propping his hip against the counter and squinting like Shisui would somehow make more sense when he was less visible. When he crossed his arms, coffee held below his lip, his stupid cropped jumper hitched up even higher. Shisui hoped he got a chill in his spine for the audacity.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm </span>
  <em>
    <span>hoping</span>
  </em>
  <span>," Shisui took a pointed sip of his new coffee and Genma sarcastically toasted him, "To up my tolerance."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he walked into T&amp;I on Thursday the twenty-seventh, four days into this new standard of daily exhaustion, Inoichi took one look at him and said; "Well, you don't look like a Jounin on sick-leave. What have you been up to?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Training," Shisui replied promptly. He accepted the summary report without even glancing at it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi was too busy using a ruler to add points onto his Danzo Timeline – which had been drawn onto one of the cork-boards and then, when the windows were replaced, screwed into a whiteboard standing frame – to cast Shisui a disparaging look but the sentiment was there. "And since when does training include wrestling with bears?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui bit his lip on a smirk. "I won't tell Gai-san you called him that."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi paused and slowly turned to frown at his student. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Maito</span>
  </em>
  <span> Gai?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Can there ever be more than one Gai?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi pointed the red marker at him in warning, which was undermined by his own smile. "Don't be tedious… you aren't pushing yourself too hard, are you?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>How do you define 'too hard?'</span>
  </em>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No, no," Shisui reassured him, flicking through the papers as though feigning work could hurry the topic on. "Just a new angle. Fighting other Uchiha or the Squad gets a little predictable after a while."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi looked at him like he wasn't sure if he could believe him. He let it slide anyway.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui wouldn't have stopped training even if he did ask.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>…………………………………………………….</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The light was dim this time of year, muted greys illuminating the soft quilt of clouds like morning did through drowsy bed linens. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Every exhale lingered like fresh steam, the biting air reddening the apples of his cheeks. Snow pillowed every facet of the landscape, white hats on buildings and shrouds over every hill. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui let his eyes drift slowly over the landscape, blue gloved hands stuffed in his pockets of his vest and ebony curls tucked carefully beneath the matching blue hat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Snowfall was a rare treat in Konoha, in Fire Country at large. Their region was so warm, pulsing heat inciting ravaging forest fires in the summer. Most winter seasons were characterised by the lingering crisp chill of autumn and the incoming deluge of wet, soggy springs. Snow, which didn't wind up immediately falling to slush and flooding, was a treat.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And New Year’s day, to mixed reactions of delight and fatigue, dawned with a coating of fresh flurries.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It hadn't rained for the entire week, the temperature just cold enough for any ominous clouds to herald blizzards instead of the usual downpour. And the snow had started to add up.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Drifts – </span>
  <em>
    <span>drifts</span>
  </em>
  <span>! – lined the carefully shovelled paths (Shisui was extremely glad he'd left his Genin days behind him) and the streets were crunching with the gritty castings of grip-salt; when it iced on the cobblestones, civilians could take a nasty fall. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The market stalls were laden with snow, the tarpaulin tents carefully brushed clean every morning so that, melted from the hot food below, customers didn't get a surprise side of slush landing on their heads. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In preparation for the night's festivities, the village was rife with volunteers cleaning the streets; a New Year's tradition of cleaning the home taken to new heights as a symbolic gesture that the village was home for all. At least, Shisui mused, the streets were always well maintained on basis.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>On top of the Genin teams and the volunteers cleaning, organisers were rushing around rehanging the street lanterns – a fiery crimson red, instead of the orange for the Kyuubi anniversary – and adjusting the token bunting. New stalls were also being constructed, selling incense and tapers and Fukubukuro surprise-bags. When the cooking started a little later, the streets would smell divine.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As the afternoon – spent playing cards (to affirm his ego after Ino proved so bafflingly good the other night) with Raidou in the ANBU common room so they could watch the decorations going up without having to brave the storm (or risk getting roped into helping) – melted into dusk, the people stepped out of their homes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was freezing out, the piled snow that had melted slightly in the sunlight now gaining an icy coating as temperatures plummeted again. People’s festival clothes were concealed by heavy coats and knitted accessories and the scent of spicy street food gathered large clusters of villagers around their tents. Both for the food and the radiating warmth.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mikoto, naturally, managed to overcome a wardrobe malfunction by swathing herself in a fur-lined hooded shawl, the outward side beautifully embroidered crimson silk. With lips to match and her kimono a deep wine red, she made a striking picture beneath the red glow of the lanterns.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As a Village Elder, she was beside the Sandaime with the other, considerably more mulish, Council Members when he gave his speech to begin the festivities (and would be again in the morning) and she was greeted by nearly everyone she came upon as 'Mikoto-hime.' </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It had been slow progress but Mikoto was charming, to say the least, and she was doing very, very well. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Each member of the Advisory Council had an overarching role to play in the running of the Village. It would be the height of foolishness to expect the Hokage, a person with great tactical and combative prowess, to have the sole say on economic and social policies. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Koharu was in charge of communal buildings, like the public baths, and public spaces, like festival decorations, as well as the academy curriculum.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Homura made judgements of business and trade regulation, especially the movements of caravans and merchants through the village walls.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Danzo, naturally, oversaw budgeting finances. Because </span>
  <em>
    <span>of course he had</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mikoto had taken to statistics like a fish to water. She'd been running the Uchiha Clan for years and she had always been incredibly smart with the money. The increase of budgeting towards things like roof improvements, rain-gutter replacements and repaving potholes on the cart roads had been one of many well-received changes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gallantly taking his wife's arm, Fugaku was the picture of a supportive husband as they led their small family unit through the streets. He'd recovered from the shock of Mikoto's new position and thrown himself into embodying what he perceived to be the perfect Clan Head, as if their increased status needed an even more impeccably united front.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Needless to say, Sasuke made his brother make a break for it with him as swiftly as possible.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui's own New Year's Eve was filled with mischief; for once, not necessarily his own.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Unforgettably and </span>
  <em>
    <span>unforgivably</span>
  </em>
  <span> on sick leave, he wasn't on duty for… anything. Which meant Shisui had found himself being conscripted as a Responsible Adult.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Which meant a night enabling Ino's antics, keeping anyone else from bodily harm, and chatting to draw an initially-shy Sakura out of her shell.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It wasn't all so exhausting; he ate all the food the kids decided they wanted to try and quickly realised they didn't much like. He had plenty of time to chat to people he knew when the kids found a new craft and spent a good twenty minutes trying to make their own lanterns or whatever.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Babysitting duty was easy, between growing up looking after the Uchiha cousins and Ino; frankly, it was an easier ride than wrangling Kakashi away from the Memorial Stone and keeping Genma from another barfight. He wondered how he, the second youngest, had become The Helpful Friend.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(Shisui was </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> The Helpful Friend. Shisui thought he was when, in reality, he was an </span>
  <em>
    <span>enabler</span>
  </em>
  <span> friend. The sober one would say “No, Genma, don’t strip on the tabletop, we can’t get banned again, we’re running out of bars!”. Shisui would say something along the lines of “Go faster! Do a kick-flip!” and then start up a brand new drinking song which had a much better beat. No, Shisui was </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> the mom-friend on a night out. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That role was implausibly designated to an extremely reluctant Kakashi. Was it any wonder he tried to do a runner early?)</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Still, Shisui was more reliable when alcohol wasn’t on the table and he wasn't in the mood to go drink that night regardless.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You doing alright?" Raidou came over at one point, cradling a cup of spiced wine. He cast his eyes across the quartet of children Shisui had found himself keeping an eye on. At least Shisui seemed to be handling everything better than Tenzo; not only were the Base Kids out of their depth, but the Mokuton-user looked similarly struck by the chaos and fluidity of the crowd. They'd work it out together. "Do you need me to grab you a drink? Or," He eyed the way Ino was playfully grappling with the Akimichi Heir, "A parent?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui lifted his third sashimi-skewer with a pointed smile. "I'm good. Have you seen Genma or Taichou?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Raidou rolled his eyes, "I'll probably find them in their cups. Are you coming to the bar later?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Whilst some shinobi and civilians were rowdy in the bars still morning, Shisui preferred the homier traditions of heralding in the new year. Especially watching the sunrise on New Year's Day. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Uchiha grinned but turned the offer down, "I've got something lined up, don't wait for me. We're all still on for food and drinks tomorrow, right?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Raidou nodded easily, "Definitely."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>No matter where he was, at home or on a mission, Shisui always watched the dawn of a brand new year. There was something magical about knowing it was the very </span>
  <em>
    <span>first</span>
  </em>
  <span> day of something new.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The sunrise wasn't any more or less beautiful on that day and that, in its own way, was part of the charm. Like being asked if you spontaneously felt older on your birthday, when you were getting older every single day and therefore </span>
  <em>
    <span>couldn't</span>
  </em>
  <span> feel the difference just because it was the anniversary. It made him feel hopeful, knowing that the sun would rise no matter what.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Kami knew it had seen him through some low points over the years. Even more so in the last few months.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui had turned twenty before; he’d never made it to the new year. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It felt real, in a way the rest didn't. He’d changed so much but the days were one’s he knew, had once scratched off his calendar and considered done with… until he’d gone back to do them again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d died before December and, since those first flurries of snow that had appeared on the tenth, he’d truly felt like he was in the clear.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>These days he didn't know what was coming. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>This year was truly a mystery. And he couldn't wait to start it.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>…………………………………………………….</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>Late at night, a few days into the new year, Shisui couldn't sleep. Again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was at his parents’ house this time, the dark, stillness of the night muffled completely by the thick blanket of snow that had yet to melt away.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Restless, like his skin was itching and his brain was unable to stop spinning round and round in circles, the Uchiha threw back his duvet and padded on bare feet to the living room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He'd sealed the work reports safely away, as he always did to ensure 'confidential' stayed 'confidential', and tucked the scroll underneath the low table he'd repurposed into a desk. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was still getting a hang on the whole 'paper-nin' aspect of his promotion. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Carefully, as one AM ticked away into two, Shisui spread out every single progress report of the investigation in chronological order across his floor.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He barely slept for yet another night, furiously trying to find some hidden clarification that had eluded them so far.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They were missing so much.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wondered if they'd ever get all the answers.</span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>A/N- ta dah!!!!</p><p>*the birthday tantō is a mouthful so, like all good blades, it needs a title: Im gonna call it Kamu (meaning 'divine'), as in 'Kamususanoo' as Shisui's unique Mangekyou Susanoo is detailed on the blade. So it's literally called The Divine Short-sword. Ta dah~</p><p>Also Gai is sooooooo fun to write!!!! Shisui wants to feel empowered and capable again and Gai is super encouraging, they're gonna be great friends! I really think the two of them vibe well, seeing as Shisui is sweetheart-go-with-the-flow as well as super competent and Gai is the actual sun and so enthusiastic! He'll also help massively with Shisui's mood and I think Shisui will help Gai feel more validated too…. Sunshine Boys now number three (Shisui, Tenzo and now Gai) </p><p>The new years traditions were taken from multiple sources and I expounded upon them to make things a little more culturally unique for konoha. Also the poinsettias Sora grows are just a seasonal thing I wanted to include for aesthetic purposes … there is a succulent called the Japanese Poinsettia which is poisonous…. Whichever breed she was tending, I'll leave up to you lol </p><p>For those of you reading my drabble fic, Tomorrowland, can we laugh together over Shisui insisting he can handle anything because he has a strong fire nature and Inoichi rolling his eyes like NO these two idiots have had this argument since the day they met</p><p>Mikoto: *her badass self*<br/>Fugaku: *desperately learning how to Murder Strut* WE NEED TO BE THE ULTIMATE POWER COUPLE</p><p>Kat says that Fugaku is now Mikoto's trophy husband and I agree</p><p>Quotes from her liveblog beta-reading this chapter<br/>"Gai just flexed his muscles and deflected oncoming trauma"<br/>"you want a big strong story...not just ripped, also shredded" "perfect to carry my baby boy" "exactly"<br/>"Fugaku: *walks in on Mikoto strangling the Elders with her bare hands*<br/>Mikoto: :&gt;<br/>Fugaku: *sigh* well. I suppose it is Murder Time. *unsheathes blade*" Fugaku brings new meaning to 'united front'</p><p>Also can I just point something out. In Canon… the Uchiha were massacred on New Years.</p><p>Wow.</p><p>We've come FAR.</p><p>Shisui: CAN WE LIKE ☞☜ TRAIN TOGETHER<br/>Gai: I WOULD BE HONOURED, MY DEAREST COMPANION AND OPPONENT IN THE QUEST TO HEIGHTEN OUR YOUTH!!!<br/>Kakashi: shisui what the FUCK did you do? DID YOU VALIDATE HIM??? SHISUI-</p><p>Genma: Shisui and Gai, training in the trees, I'll K-I-C-K your ass if you break each other</p><p>Tenzo in the bg surrounded by traumatised children: am I a teen mom?<br/>Izumo and Kotetsu, who are the same age and still spitball each other: y e s</p><p>On a night out:<br/>Genma: the problematic adventurer. Almost everything that goes wrong is his fault. Barfights? Being sick? Terrible karaoke? Look no further.<br/>Raidou: the deceptive drinker. You think Raidou is gonna keep his head….nope. Every time they go out, Raidou says I deserve ME time and buys whatever he wants. He's the one making everyone run through the streets at five AM because he wants a particular food and he's CERTAIN they're open. Spoiler alert: they never are.<br/>Tenzo: the blushy one. he's such a lightweight that he's actually good for nothing on a night out. He will sit there, blushing, and giggle at every single antic and then he'll agree to whatever adventure is put forward and then he'll fall asleep and be a zombie in the morning.<br/>Shisui: the enabler. Genma says he wants to dance? Shisui is like GO FOR IT BOO. Raidou insists he's starving? Shisui said MY MAN NEEDS FOOD. tenzo wants to try a cocktail he's never heard of? Shisui said let's SHARE a PITCHER! kakashi wants to go home? Shisui cuddles him and announces that a SLEEPOVER is a GREAT IDEA!!!!<br/>Kakashi: Mom. Really badly wants to ditch them. Like, reaaaaally badly. But Genma has a foot in his crotch and Shisui is holding his other arm and Raidou is talking to him and Tenzo would probably be upset if he left. And…. He'd have to deal with paperwork if he left them to destroy public property. Better to just…. Drag them back….and make them buy him stuff too.</p><p>If anyone is unnerved by the alcohol refs in this chapter, I'm sorry but shinobi have their comforts just like with smoking. If it makes you feel better, Gai is teetotal (you cannot have perfect abs without cutting the alcohol) and Itachi never has a sip.</p><p>Also can everyone stop freaking out over my not-fic-related-headcanon Hokage!Gai pfffft</p><p>Me, planning Part Two: so should I do a jump or thera-<br/>Kat: THERAPY, FUCKING TAKE HIM TO THERAPY</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Strong Winds, Stronger Trees</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>“The stronger wind, the stronger trees,<br/>The further sky, the greater length,<br/>The more the storm, the more the strength.”<br/>- Douglas Malloch</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>January seemed to pass in the blink of an eye.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>To Shisui, straining at the metaphorical leash to return to active duty, this was both a blessing and a curse.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A blessing, because he was raring to go. A curse, because he was </span>
  <em>
    <span>raring to go. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mikoto had survived the trial of a full Clan Head Council over the winter, where funding reports were reviewed and Clan Heads were able to petition for certain boons and bring forward any grievances. The Hyuuga Head, Hiashi, was still miffed that the Uchiha had been placed above the rest of them in the Advisory Council but he hadn't dared to voice such an opinion in the face of Mikoto’s full attention. Shisui, who had been shadowing her on the build up to the assembly, had noted the sourness twisting his mouth and mentally pinned it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His work between the Uchiha and the Sandaime had yet to wane, much to his aggravation. He had been so keen to see this day come but, like all things when translated from hope into reality, it had lost much of its lustre. Not that Shisui would ever want to halt the communication being established, he wasn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>self-sabotaging</span>
  </em>
  <span> of everything they’d done to get here, but it was torture to go from a regular ANBU agent to the poor sod rushing between the two camps. Talking to the Sandaime was never easy and the Elders, ever since he pulled that trick on them the day Mikoto joined the Hokage Advisors, had been much more wary of him. It was like he’d progressed from being a scrappy little boy to a scrappy little delinquent they were expected to work with.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Not the nicest environment, no. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With Mikoto so busy with the village on top of still managing the Clan, she’d naturally depended a little more on Itachi.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her eldest was extremely lucky to have shifted career trajectory before this all unfolded. Shisui couldn't even fathom how his cousin might have struggled if he hadn't been village-locked. As a Station Officer, Itachi was able to keep an eye and an ear to the ground regarding what needed to be done within the Clan walls. Very much taking after his mother, as became more and more apparent as the years progressed, Itachi assumed some of her workload nigh-on seamlessly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui, who felt that a battered intern despite his own history with his new positions, was admittedly jealous. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But it seemed that not everyone saw him that way.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shisui, Okaa-sama used these building merchants? Do you know the address?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shisui-kun, tell me, what do you think should be done to address the discrepancy in-"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shunshin, what will the Hokage </span>
  <em>
    <span>say</span>
  </em>
  <span>?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"How close are they to a result? I have three leads lined up but I need your go-ahead to wrap this up-"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It felt like, suddenly, he’d gone from the position of a seen-but-not-heard bodyguard to an important advisor himself. The imposter syndrome reared its ugly head at any and every given moment, until Shisui felt like someone was seconds away from pointing a finger at him in realisation and shouting ‘hey, what’s this random nobody doing here?’</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He brought this up in his next session with Inoichi, who had sighed </span>
  <em>
    <span>very</span>
  </em>
  <span> gently and given him a </span>
  <em>
    <span>very</span>
  </em>
  <span> different picture.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shisui-kun, think of it this way; you’re a fine shinobi with very particular connections. You are my only student, you are a well-established ANBU captain - when you take the job - and you've had the same upbringing as your Clan Heir cousin. Your file boasts a flawless track record, impressive intellect and," He leaned close as if he could hammer the words through Shisui's skull, "You’re sensitive to the needs and wants of those around you without allowing yourself to lose focus. You have a spine of steel and hold yourself and others up with great integrity. They are lucky to have you."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d swallowed hard and, somehow, managed a croak of thanks.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>On good days, Shisui grinned and laughed his way through training with Gai, caught up with his friends over lunch, and animatedly threw himself into the political proceedings. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had a lot of… ‘meh’ days. Neutral, where he was tired but accomplished and managed a few smiles and didn't slink away from unnecessary social interactions. Those were the days he was able to remember to do his dishes, to clean up around the house, to do laundry and buy food. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>On bad days… ‘bad’ didn’t seem to cover it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui’s phobia therapy had begun in earnest in the weeks following the New Year’s celebrations. They had, as Inoichi had promised, begun with baths; he’d scoffed and rolled his eyes and then found himself shaking violently when the water came up to his waist. His memory, unfortunately, kept reminding him that it was possible to drown in an inch of liquid and he was seated in considerably more than that. Worse even than sitting, white knuckled clutching the tub’s sides in his sodden underwear, was Ino eventually figuring out that someone was having bath-time during the day when she was out playing. She, who adored bubble baths and floral aromatherapy like any excited preteen raised in a flower shop, immediately wanted to join in.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How do you tell a nine-year-old that you’re deathly afraid of water when, every summer for as long as she could remember, you’d swam with her in the river shallows? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi had told him to identify the emotions connected to events that had an effect on him throughout their sessions. Had said it would help him identify the root triggers. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He knew the words for this feeling.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was humiliating. Shameful. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Knowing that he was being hard on himself didn't make him stop feeling this way. If anything, he felt even more aggravated by it; he could clearly see where he was pulling and tearing at the seams, but it was like watching through glass. Like he couldn't stop it. He could just describe the haemorrhaging perfectly, like a third party observer; 'Look here, see how my own self-esteem and mentality is pulling me apart'. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi tried to help. It was reassuring… until it wasn't. Most of the time it made him want to snap. What exactly ‘snap’ entailed, he wasn't sure; he didn't think he’d want to find out. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It made him feel like he was losing it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Shisui," </span>
  </em>
  <span>Inoichi's tone brooked no refusal even if his gaze was gentle</span>
  <em>
    <span>, "The first rule of recovery."</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His eyes slipped closed of their own volition. He wondered if this could be classified as soft-focus torture. Still, he obediently recited the answer; he knew the process better than the back of his hand. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(The way the back of his hand looked hadn't been beaten into his head with relentless, quickfire quizzing in the middle of a trench.)</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Step one: the mind will heal at its own pace."</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The reminder helped just as much as it made him feel worse. Because he would completely swear by those guidelines for </span>
  <em>
    <span>other</span>
  </em>
  <span> people.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But not for him. No, he needed to pull it together. And fast.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Training with Gai, who didn't prescribe his own life to concepts like ‘days off’ or ‘lie-ins’, helped that. He couldn't be such a pathetic mess if he was able to kick Konoha’s premier taijutsu master through three trees and walk away from the experience. But… it was a frighteningly thin line he was skirting.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But one day, Inoichi - Shisui carefully followed the movements of his pen since he was banned from knowing what exactly he was recording - wrote ‘signs of a depressive episode’ during their session.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Uchiha nearly burned the book right there on top of his desk.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The words, unspoken between them but written in his </span>
  <em>
    <span>fucking</span>
  </em>
  <span> file, hung between them like a weight. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Do you think I'm losing it?" Shisui spontaneously asked Tenzo one night when he’d managed to catch the younger agent around dinnertime.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They’d gone out for katsudon and Tenzo, usually more on the side of subdued, had practically rambled about Shin wanting to join the academy. When asked how he was doing, the question had just… leapt out.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tenzo’s face, illuminated by the amber restaurant light, sobered. The stand around them was half-deserted, too early for most people eating out and far too late for the lunch rush. Tenzo, who had been spending his days helping Gen rehabilitate the Base Children in between his mission rotas, was dressed in his uniform with his hair smartly tucked away in a braid. Shisui felt like kicking himself for so thoughtlessly ruining the atmosphere.  Hazel-grey eyes assessed him carefully; Tenzo had, through helping the children, become so much more comfortable expressing concern. Shisui, as much as he was glad for him, almost felt worse under that soft gaze. "What do you mean?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui stared at his drink. He’d gone for fizzy pop over alcohol. Inoichi’s notes had spooked him and he didn't want to be tempted into a cycle of… anything. If he was a smoker, he probably would have binned them all too. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It’s nothing," He grimaced slightly without looking up. Even to his own ears, he sounded plastic. Fiddling with the useless stirring straw, he avoided Tenzo's searching gaze by poking at the bobbing ice; he’d ordered the drink without any but hadn't felt like sending the poor server back with it when he’d been given some anyway. His teeth ached from the sensitivity. "It was just a stupid thought."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tenzo, the stupidly nice friend he was, didn’t drop it. Maybe, after the shitshow of Shisui’s dropping the Danzo bombshell out of the blue had pushed his gentle acceptance to the limit. Shisui hoped not; they could only deal with one Genma-esque busybody in this world. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shisui-kun." The brunette frowned slowly, reaching out to hesitantly place one hand on top of his, fingers brushing his knuckles where they rested on the bar top. "What’s going on?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui was silent for a long time. Long enough for the only other customers there to place their orders and talk for a while before finally receiving their piping hot dishes. Their smatterings of laughter made the duo’s own stillness all the more poignant. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I’m still on sick-leave," Shisui's voice, when he finally spoke, was hushed. Like confessing</span>
  <em>
    <span> it</span>
  </em>
  <span> was something illicit.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tenzo still looked confused, tilting his head just </span>
  <em>
    <span>so</span>
  </em>
  <span> to prompt Shisui to continue. That gesture was, at least, familiar. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I know," He agreed doubtfully. He obviously didn't understand where the Uchiha was going with this, "Only Kakashi-senpai and Genma-senpai have left the village."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Well, yes. Raidou had filed for temporary leave from his ANBU duties whilst Hiromi-sensei hammered the first three, crucial months of the apprenticeship into his poor brain. The practice was rare but not unheard of, more particularly for those agents who were transferring specialisations and needed further training or who were gaining more responsibilities within their Clans and needed time to gather grip on their private studies. Some people, like Rikari with her young family, dipped in and out regularly. And Tenzo had been anchored to the village boundaries just as Shisui had been, partly by his testimony in the slow process of posthumously charging Danzo with his crimes and by his strengthening bonds with the rescued children. So, no, Shisui wasn't the only one not working as he had been.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But he </span>
  <em>
    <span>should</span>
  </em>
  <span> have been. It wasn't the </span>
  <em>
    <span>same</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I’ve not been approved for active duty," Shisui insisted. Something guilty and desperate welled in his chest and prickled his eyes. He refused to look away from the ice bobbing in his glass. Tenzo’s hand was warm and slightly damp, still stubbornly rested on top of his.  He refused to be the one to move. "It’s different for me. I didn't make the decision, it's above me."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Different how?" Tenzo pressed. Their katsudon was threatening to go cold on them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Raidou’s been learning," Shisui snapped and immediately felt terrible. He finally looked up, catching Tenzo’s gaze with sorry eyes. "And you’ve been helping the children adapt. It's a great cause! But me… I haven't passed my evaluation… Tenzo-kun, it’s been nearly three months. You </span>
  <em>
    <span>know</span>
  </em>
  <span> what they say."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>An ANBU break was the end of the road. He’d be shuffled into a desk job or something at the Academy if he wasn’t careful. Mission pay was tight as it was, the Black Ops didn't keep people on if they didn’t do the work. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The skin between Tenzo’s brows crumpled, a dimple appearing in the divot. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"But you’ve been working," He pointed out, "You’re busy every single </span>
  <em>
    <span>day</span>
  </em>
  <span>, between your Clan and the T&amp;I Department… extended leave is only if an agent cannot handle the work-load or the nature of the job. You’re just," Tenzo waved his other hand, still clasping chopsticks he’d yet to use, "Busy here."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Just… busy here…</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Well. Tenzo wasn't wrong…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I just wish I was out there," Shisui admitted, "I might be working but it’s just talking, they never make any decisions and - I guess I want something more tangible."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Missions are open and close cases," Tenzo agreed with a hesitant curl to his wide mouth, "More straightforward in a sense. I understand."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui huffed a weak laugh of agreement. Being Monkey was… easier. Simpler. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I’ve been seeing sensei too." </span>
  <em>
    <span>And, sometimes, it makes me feel like I’m going to break.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tenzo paused, seemingly weighing the heaviness of such an admission, before gently shuffling Shisui’s plate towards him. The Uchiha smiled sardonically before scooping up a mouthful; it was just about warm but still good, the thick tang of sweet spice on his tongue. When he was satisfied that Shisui was eating, the brunette started talking. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shisui-kun, if you're talking to Inoichi-sama… well." He hitched an awkward shoulder, "You went through a lot. You deserve to recover. When Raidou-senpai was stabbed in the shoulder, he was –"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Out for three days." Shisui placed his glass down with a quiet thump. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tenzo very nearly glared at him. The flat-eyed glance he sent the older nin translated much the same message. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Gone for as long as it took to get better. It was three days because they fixed it with chakra - you can't… do that with the brain. You know that better than most people, long before now. You studied the brain and psychology, didn’t you?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui's chopsticks clattered louder than they should have against the rim of his bowl. He swallowed around nothing, eyes closing for a moment as if to gather strength.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You’re not getting it, Tenzo-kun," Shisui sighed, "I can't </span>
  <em>
    <span>go</span>
  </em>
  <span> back in the field the way I am now."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tenzo inclined his head, stirring his own utensils through the rice to mix the two together like a heathen. He fished out a piece of chicken, washing the mouthful down with his own drink before replying. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You won't," Tenzo agreed. He didn't seem to see what a disaster that was for Shisui.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(He wouldn't play along. Insisted on using </span>
  <em>
    <span>logic.)</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And Shisui abruptly remembered - because he was callous and thoughtless and </span>
  <em>
    <span>Kami</span>
  </em>
  <span> - that, in ROOT, agents didn't </span>
  <em>
    <span>have</span>
  </em>
  <span> health care. They didn't have psychological evaluations with which they could pass or fail because they didn't receive </span>
  <em>
    <span>any support </span>
  </em>
  <span>full stop.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They died when they died and they broke when they broke. Like steel shattering and quickly discarded.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tenzo had needed to be constantly escorted to the hospital medics the first dozen times he was hurt on a mission because… he just never thought to seek medical attention.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(This was completely different from Kakashi’s aversion to treatment in the sense that, to their Captain, the hospital reeked of sickness and death. Like walking into a morgue when so much good was done there too.) </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui had sat there, disregarding the amazing resources afforded to him, as if Tenzo hadn't had to survive without any of that for his entire childhood.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He felt sick, eyeing his clean dish with trepidation. He was a terrible person.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Regret. Sorrow. Self-loathing.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Sorry." He rasped, coughed, already fumbling for his wallet for money to cover both of their checks. "You’re right, of course."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tenzo looked alarmed now, ramrod straight on his stool and his own meal forgotten. "Shisui-kun?" He asked, a minute waver hinting at his own anxiety. His face was utterly slack, returning to that indoctrinated blankness by force of habit. Tenzo was too nice, of course he would think he was the one at fault, "Have I said –"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It’s nothing you’ve done." Shisui murmured, pulling the bills free and placing them in a crumpled heap between their glasses. Their server was already glancing over. "I’m sorry for complaining."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tenzo abruptly lashed a hand out, lunging between them to slap Shisui’s palm flat to the bar with an audible crack of skin-on-skin. The bills were crushed beneath.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They both froze.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tenzo’s throat visibly bobbed. For once, he didn't seem inclined to apologise. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Complaining?" Something terrifyingly like distraught had crept into his words and Shisui kept his own gaze trained carefully on their hands. The more Tenzo relearned the art of emoting, the more devastating he became. Shisui was helpless, as most people came to be, towards the Mokuton-user. He didn't dare look at him directly, at risk of tears.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When his friend failed to reply after a few beats, Tenzo continued, "What do you mean </span>
  <em>
    <span>complaining</span>
  </em>
  <span>? We’ve just been talking about the necessity of taking the time to heal and – </span>
  <em>
    <span>Shisui-kun</span>
  </em>
  <span>, why don't you think you deserve to recover?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Because I'm terrified that I won't be able to.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>That I’ll be shaking violently every time I hear the rush of water.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>That I won't ever sleep a full night again and I’ll never be able to fully explain myself. Never be able to tell you the truth one day.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>That this is what I'm going to feel like for the rest of my life.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He tried to speak but found the words wouldn't come.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The press of Tenzo’s hand was unrelenting and something stubborn crept into the line of his mouth. "I don't know why you were so scared that day we went to the Naka –" Shisui felt the ice crawl up his spine at the realisation that Tenzo had pieced together that he was benched for more than his nightmares "– but I know </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span>. You’re the strongest person I know, Shisui-kun. If anyone can do it, you can."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The strongest –?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But Genma, flexible and so resilient… Kakashi himself, the one who’d saved Tenzo, who’d given him a choice and a future… Raidou, reassuring and constant…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Surely not. </span>
  </em>
  <span>There was something horrifying about that thought. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Surely not</span>
  </em>
  <span> me.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tenzo’s gaze flitted across the Uchiha’s features, cataloguing the helpless denial in his dark eyes and the upset tremble of his lower lip. His own features steadied, the press of his hand softening. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His voice was quietly hopeful when he asked, "Let’s get some dessert?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui wondered what other tricks he’d picked up from helping traumatised children. </span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>……………………………………………………</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>Aha</span>
  </em>
  <span>! Shisui-san!" Gai twirled out of the way of Shisui’s roundhouse kick like a dancer in the Daimyo’s court. "Your fearsome technique has improved considerably in the time we have trained together! The bright flame of your spirit burns as a beacon on this dark morning!</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was barely six AM, when dawn was a casual consideration flirting with the horizon, of </span>
  <em>
    <span>course </span>
  </em>
  <span>it was dark.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui didn't reply, too busy dropping beneath Gai’s returning kick, propelling himself from the slippery mud to land one, two - </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck! Duck</span>
  </em>
  <span> - punches into Gai’s solar-plex. He felt riled today, trapped within his own skin in a way he knew a good S Rank would shake out of him. Village-bound, his options were in short supply.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>So beating the top Taijutsu practitioner this side of anywhere (or wherever Tsunade-hime had holed herself up) seemed like his best choice.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai, seemingly sensing his fervour, bounded backwards to put a few meters between them and reached for the bindings around his forearms with a huge grin that, somehow, managed to look intimidating. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I am forced to push my own boundaries to match your youthful spirit!" The first weight hit the mud, the grass having been soaked by melted snow and rain to a thick clay-like sludge, and sank a few inches. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Kami, </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck –!</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui swore beneath his breath, lunging backwards and up into the nearest tree, just barely managing to avoid the breathless speed of Gai’s next attack.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Where they’d been sparring in the mud - TG-12 was more swamp than forest at the moment and the evidence of which was thoroughly coating both of them - the man’s weighted orange legwarmers rested innocently in the middle of the slick skids of soft earth carved by their shifting feet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai was relentless, so quick and smooth that Shisui could feel the turning tide of the spar; they’d both lost and won various spars, not keeping count as part of the natural pull and push of a training regime. But this… it was an unmistakable gear change. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui felt like he was barely holding his own. The feeling was foreign and all the more frightening for it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Desperate for some reprieve, he alternated between forcing Gai into tight turns, sprinting around their designated area like a poor game of cat and mouse, and wiggling around the main brunt of his attacks. Shisui wasn't a scrappy little whippet like he’d been when he was young but - he was fast and nimble and Gai was much more heavy-set than he was, all hard-packed muscle and thick strength.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He’s going to get me</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Shisui’s thoughts fluttered quicker than he could move, which was saying a lot.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They darted, blurring to the naked eye, around each other.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai was so fast though –</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui wasn't much practised in being the slower one. His Shunshin was a distance thing –</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Or –</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Was it?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The idea was mad, but experimentation was the domain of the training ground. If not now, when?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When Gai threw his next punch, Shisui grabbing the extended line of his arm and pushed himself up, twisting over the mountain of his shoulders, up up and </span>
  <em>
    <span>around-</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His chakra flexed, like the snap of a whip, and the world blurred for the briefest </span>
  <em>
    <span>moment –</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His Sharingan spun, gaze ravenous in his taunt face, as Gai’s own eyes widened alongside his grin.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The kick landed, sending the Daylight Jounin flying into a tree all the way across the clearing with a resounding </span>
  <em>
    <span>‘crack’</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui paused on his own bough, crouched low to the trunk.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His own grin felt breathless. It </span>
  <em>
    <span>worked</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shisui-san! Such fervour!" The split trunk cracked and groaned as Gai levered himself from the wreckage. His spine stayed hunched for a few hobbling steps before the kinks worked themselves out. His excitement directly equated to a booming shout. "Do it again!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For the rest of that day, and the next few as well, Shisui worked on his Shunshin ‘stutter-step’. He’d used Shunshin plenty in combat before - he had the moniker for a </span>
  <em>
    <span>reason</span>
  </em>
  <span>, after all - but he’d never tried to reduce the motion of the jutsu to the briefest instants or individual motions. In hindsight, the evolution felt obvious and natural. There was a risk of… dismemberment but Shisui had perfected the jutsu beyond what anyone could imagine years ago.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Still, it was tricky, something to focus on integrating into his current fighting style. Something to cut his teeth on.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gai was wholeheartedly enthusiastic about Shisui's experimentation, taking blows and leverage throws like it was his sole purpose in life to act like Shisui's punching bag. The unrestrained encouragement only drove his progress harder and faster.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When they weren't training, Shisui tried incorporating partial Shunshin into other tasks to refine the delicacy of the movement.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(He split countless drinks, and thoroughly soaked himself, before getting a handle on it.)</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wrote up the week's report himself, in the last few days of January, and only had to redo it twice, tearing straight through the paper the first time and smearing ink the second. Boar didn't even notice the difference.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he managed to use Shunshin to swap out cards during his next poker match with Raidou, he felt like he'd finally figured something out.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It sang with accomplishment. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>……………………………………………………</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>January ended abruptly with the clash of torrential rain. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As the heavens poured over the valley, Shisui wondered if they weren't better off naming the region the Land of Flash Flooding. Every time Kiri-nin called Leaf-nin shit with suiton - which they did, frequently - it made him want to shove their faces in the overflowing gutters lining Konoha's streets. They knew how to handle a bit of the wet, despite popular opinion.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Still, despite the disappearance of those brief, dazzling snow-covered landscapes, Shisui found himself waking up one morning to the odd realisation that it was February.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>February.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He sat quietly for a moment, staring across from the edge of his futon at the generic calendar he'd propped against his dresser on the far wall.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The date had been underlined in fat, red marker what felt like a hundred years ago.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The morning dawned misty and dim beyond the windows, still veiled by the fine sheets of rain pouring down. The sun had barely risen. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>February…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi's calm tone resounded in his head. </span>
  <em>
    <span>"You don't have a mission coming up until after January." </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He'd been told they'd start therapy 'in the new year'. Which they had… but –</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If January was over… Shisui, by logical conclusion, was up for reassessment?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In a sudden flurry of activity, the Jounin launched himself from the tangled embrace of his bedsheets and made a scramble for the pile of freshly laundered clothes. Being benched had been good for his chores, at least. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pulling his jumper over his head followed by the purple vest, Shisui yanked on trousers and grabbed his equipment pouches, hitai-ate and sandals in the doorway.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was barely eight when, still chewing the porridge he'd literally cobbled together, Shisui dashed through his front door, jumped onto the roof and Shunshined before he'd even touched down. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He flickered across the village rooftops, landing so fleetingly and so lightly that his sandals didn't even disrupt the water flowing over the rooftiles. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi, as was his well-established routine when projects (or Shisui) weren't destroying all structure, was in his office for around half-eight. He’d not even had time to make his first cup of coffee when Shisui burst through the door.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Yamanaka’s ponytail was still damp from the sleeting rain outside, cream scarf looped limply around his neck. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shisui-kun." Inoichi blinked, flicking a glance over his student’s ragged appearance. "Is something happening?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I’m up for review today, right?" The words burst out of him, completely unprofessional and just as unrepentant. Dark eyes noted the pile of fresh paperwork at the corner of Inoichi’s desk, "Is that the assessment?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi remained frozen for a beat before, suddenly, whirling away to hang up his scarf and fix his drink. With his back firmly to the Uchiha, he replied, "No, those are the progress assessments for Anko’s extraction team. They’d had no luck, at least not so far."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Momentarily sidetracked by that piece of news, Shisui let the door finally swing shut behind him. One of his curls dripped down the side of his face as he became abruptly aware of the damp cling of her clothes to his shoulders and calves. No wonder Inoichi had thought it was an emergency. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Nothing?" Shisui frowned, shaking his head and immediately wincing when the smatter of flung waterdrops resounded in the room. Inoichi gave him a </span>
  <em>
    <span>look, </span>
  </em>
  <span>relaxed once more. Shisui filed the detail away. "How is that possible? I know we didn't have time to thoroughly search anything but…"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi poured the water through the coffee-filter with an unimpressed hum. "Your </span>
  <em>
    <span>blackmailer</span>
  </em>
  <span> apparently did the impossible; he found a room that doesn't exist."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui exhaled sharply through his nose, "There's been no trace of him anywhere. I've been scanning the valley this whole damn time and not so much as a flicker. He’s playing the long game with me."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"He’ll return when he’s ready," Inoichi cautioned, passing the Uchiha the first cup of coffee. Shisui wrapped his cold hands around it, breathing in the earthy scent curling up like the steam just visible above the rim, "We’ll deal with it whenever that day comes but, until then, we just don’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>know</span>
  </em>
  <span> where that hidden vault is."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It’s been three months," Shisui’s gaze slipped to the windows, "How much longer will the Hokage allow this to continue?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It’ll end when we are done," Inoichi’s tone booked no refusal. He slipped past Shisui, hand bracing gently on the curve of his shoulder, and seated himself at his desk before pulling the forms towards him. Shisui migrated to the edge of the fainting couch.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As Inoichi started making notes, the Uchiha let his gaze wander and then abruptly catch on the blue file left on top of the filing cabinet closest to the sofa.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Channelling Shunshin to his arm, Shisui’s hand snapped out and snatched the folder, quick as a flash. Inoichi started muttering under his breath as he flicked through Anko’s report, nearly bent double against his desk. He noticed nothing. Shisui flipped it open.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The office was quiet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Until –</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Sensei," Shisui's voice sounded oddly loud, echoing in his ears like they were stood in a great, empty hall. Inoichi, who had just vacated his seat to flutter around with Anko’s paperwork under one arm and his damned notebook in the other, paused. The brief note, written in Boar’s hand and tucked into at the front of Shisui’s file, weighed more than it should have in his hand, "Sensei, why aren't I up for review?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The blonde didn't turn around. "Hmm?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui's eyes narrowed, suspicious. He made the next plausible leap of logic. Because, if Boar was asking for Shisui’s status and Inoichi wasn't even giving Shisui an interview, shooting the possibility down before it was even viable, then something was going on here. And all that was immediately left to him was –</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Why don't you want me to go back out there?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi placed his files down with more gentleness than needed. For him, it was akin to slamming them, "You didn't pass the evaluation."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Betrayal.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui was genuinely flabbergasted. "What evaluation?" He gestured around them as if the paperwork would magically appear. In his other hand, he shook the blue file meaningfully. "You didn't give me anything!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi didn't turn around, focusing instead on tucking his notebook away just so. He eluded forced calm, "You think we could sit you down for an interview and not expect you to cheat?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui’s throat closed because the blonde was right. He had depended on exactly that happening.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You know </span>
  <em>
    <span>exactly</span>
  </em>
  <span> what needs to be said in that situation. Your evaluation has been ongoing in the field. You're not ready for external missions but, if you've read that report </span>
  <em>
    <span>correctly</span>
  </em>
  <span>," The barb was biting, "Then you'd know you've been returned to the village mission rota."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sweeping night patrols and running the wall and guarding Naruto weren't what Shisui had been praying for. Just one mission, so he could feel like he wasn't being forced into early medical retirement. Just</span>
  <em>
    <span> one</span>
  </em>
  <span>. "Sensei…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No. I know what you're going to say, what you're going to ask me. I won't use our personal connection to have you passed prematurely."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui's jaw clenched. "And what? You're not using that advantage to keep me here?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>Shisui</span>
  </em>
  <span>." Inoichi turned around, disappointment lining his face prematurely. Shisui felt that stab of guilt he always did but the anger - borderline panic - would not be so easily quelled. "I was assigned your therapist before I was your sensei." That was a week's difference, a schematic, and they both knew it. "You cannot go into the field with your current trauma level. When you've dropped a tier or two, we'll talk."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"...and you're not retiring me?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi would have looked less shocked if Shisui had taken a swing at him, "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Retire –</span>
  </em>
  <span> Shisui, surely you don't…" He visibly gathered himself, rounding his desk and advancing on his student. Shisui held his ground but found his upper arms being gently yet firmly gripped instead. The blonde seemed on the verge of shaking him. "You’re not being pulled from ANBU," He insisted, "Hasn't Commander Boar made it perfectly clear that she’s determined to keep you close? She knows the way the wind is blowing and she's made her bet already. As have I."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Close?" Shisui yelped in disbelief, "She threatened to take my mask before I came up with the idea of liaising on the fly, or have you forgotten?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi’s expression was endlessly patient, aqua eyes carefully cataloguing every micro-expression to cross the Uchiha’s face. Unlike before, Shisui didn't feel studied like a specimen but… like Inoichi was being extremely mindful of Shisui’s feelings. It made him feel… hesitantly validated. Seen, at least. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"She was testing you," He seemed completely sure, "She wanted you to make a decision and she forced your hand; politics, as I'm sure you know now, are very messy and underhanded."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d heard the Elders speak more in the past two months than he’d ever wanted in his life. And meeting with the Sandaime never became easier; if anything, he felt like a fool holding his playing cards upside down and accidentally flashing to the opponent. Clumsy, unskilled and easy prey. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"She had me completely fooled then," Shisui replied, gaze dipping uncomfortably. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi’s hands squeezed him for a second. "But it won't work again," He pointed out. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui nodded.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi paused for a moment before continuing, still watching Shisui closely, "You know this process, Shisui. How many times have you taken your own Squad’s mental health in hand because you know they won't see a specialist and you </span>
  <em>
    <span>care</span>
  </em>
  <span>. You know this, you know how it pans out, but you’re resisting. Why? What’s changed?" His eyes were steady, chin dipping to maintain eye contact even when Shisui tried to subtly avoid it. "Talk to me, Shisui-kun."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Grief. Fear. Comfort. Guilt</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He sucked in a breath and felt like he was choking on it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi would know, he'd know how </span>
  <em>
    <span>weak</span>
  </em>
  <span> he was –</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But Inoichi already knew that. Inoichi was helping him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Frustration, so bitter it burned like fury</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I’m just – I’m </span>
  <em>
    <span>sick</span>
  </em>
  <span> of feeling this way!" The words seemed to burst, like a pressure valve, and then it poured out no matter how hard he tried. His hands came up of their own volition to fist in the material stretching over his chest. Inoichi’s grip moved with the motion, refusing to release him like he feared that, as soon as he let go, his student would be up and out of the window in an instant. His heart was pounding and he didn't even know if it was from anger or fear </span>
  <em>
    <span>or –</span>
  </em>
  <span> "I'm just so fucking sick of feeling </span>
  <em>
    <span>terrified</span>
  </em>
  <span>! All the time! I can't even fucking – </span>
  <em>
    <span>urgh!</span>
  </em>
  <span>"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi’s hands clamped down and this time he really did shake him. "Then we do something to make you feel safer!"</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>……………………………………………………</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>It took an unsurprising amount of planning. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Inoichi, however, seemed completely supportive of this endeavour. Whatever it took to secure his student, and he obviously meant it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>First, he had taken a whole day out to visit Hiromi. There was a lot of planning to go into this, not least because it needed to be perfect and there would be a lot of… talk… when it became known.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He and Inoichi had sat down, then and there after their spat, and hashed out whatever they could do. Feasibly. Shisui, as a Jounin and someone who lived one foot in the ANBU dorms and one in a huge Clan Compound, had all the security systems he reasonably could without devolving into a paranoid hermit. Like Kakashi. Then, they had to discuss the viability of the idea; ergo, what were the chances he’d be murdered for the gall. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui had soldiered on anyway. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Resolve</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d sat in his normal, Monday morning meeting with the Uchiha Elders as they bickered over whether ceding control of the Uchiha police would liberate them or undermine what control they had consolidated, and he’d said nothing of his plan. They’d find out... naturally. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It had felt… good, to be the one holding the cards for once.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hiromi-sensei herself had squinted at him as if, from pure will power alone, she could mysteriously see the answers across his face. With a gesture of her hands, he kneeled at her feet, in her busy house with her pack of wailing felines, and allowed her to run those skilled fingertips across every feature.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It will hurt," She cautioned.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui had smiled, the expression captured by her trailing touch, "It’ll be worth it."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hiromi was an artist and a perfectionist; any favour done by her, for such a cause, would take extra caution. For Shisui… she would finalise the designs in a month. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A month.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He could… live with that.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>(</span>
  <em>
    <span>Anxious. Excited. Worried</span>
  </em>
  <span>.)</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>……………………………………………………</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Playing the waiting game was a particular kind of exhausting.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>February rolled in with a brisk wind, chasing the lingering crisp frost of midwinter. The trees began to show signs of life, the faintest touches of green sprouts emerging along the empty claws of their branches. By the end of the second week, grabbing his groceries from the marketplace, Shisui noticed the gentle flush of pink around them from the cherry blossom buds colouring the trees lining the streets. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hiromi's project gnawed in the back of his mind but, between work and perfecting his Shunshin Stutter with Gai, he managed to keep a lid on his anxiety throughout the wait.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Throwing himself into the Uchiha situation, keeping tabs on Inoichi’s work and sipping tea - that Tadame kept cheerfully insisting he pick - with the Sandaime, he didn't even realise that a fortnight had passed until –</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Academy yard was a flurry of activity, more so than usual, and Shisui, holding a battered umbrella that Sora had dug out for him from some crevice under the counter, was completely bemused as to why. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Spotting a semi-familiar figure through the sleeting rain, Shisui picked his way through the puddles, all covered in a mushy quilt of cherry blossoms, to share his umbrella with the brunette. Her companions, caked with mud, wandered dangerously close to his clean clothes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Inuzuka-kun, good afternoon."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hana cast a wearily amused glance at the material covering her drenched form before flashing her teeth at the older nin. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Not going to try something, Uchiha?" Her tattoos bunched with the pull of her mouth. Her mascara was dragging down a little under her lower lashline, "I know plenty of lines about soaked clothes and sharing cover if you’re struggling."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui blinked once, twice. Hana was like Itachi in his mind, being only a few months younger. To hear that tone was… blindsiding. "What?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The howling ring of the school bell sounded throughout the building behind them. One of Hana’s ninken whined, shaking his head as though he could spare himself the piercing jab of noise. His pelt, Shisui noted with a hidden smile, was smeared with mud and flower petals. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hana’s sharp bark of incredulous laughter broke him from the tangent of his thoughts, musing how much time the Inuzuka must spend washing their hounds. "You don't know?" Shisui’s face seemed to be answer enough because she continued almost immediately, "You came to collect your sister today and you don't even know what you're getting yourself into. You’re gonna regret this," She snickered gleefully. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tempted to point out that she herself was here for sibling pick-up despite the 'notorious date,' Shisui rolled his eyes, unwillingly caught by the Chuunin's flare for suspense. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What, will the kids have rolled in the mud? Am I going to get tackled by a filthy four-foot girl?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hana’s teeth flashed with her smug grin, "It’s Valentine’s Day."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui’s smile dropped like a stone, "Are you </span>
  <em>
    <span>serious</span>
  </em>
  <span>?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The school doors were slammed open with a resounding bang, followed immediately by the thundering of students pouring out into the yard. There was a disturbing amount of pink dispersed throughout the mob. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he’d been at school, Shisui hadn't… really had time for romance.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As in, quite literally, he wasn't around his yearmates long enough to know them without even adding silly crushes to the mix. Those students he had seen often enough to get a feel for their personalities… had been much older than him. Who crushed on a little kid? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The average graduation age was twelve to thirteen these days.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(Shisui had been working on his Jounin promotion then.)</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>By the time puberty had come swinging, Shisui had been knee deep in missions and had higher clearance than most Second War veterans. He’d had precisely two relationships (to use the term generously). </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shinobi, it sometimes felt like (especially to his generation), either revelled in entanglements of the emotional or physical kind… or, consciously or subconsciously, avoided them like an infectious disease. Even in his own Squad, only Genma had any kind of sex or intimacy with other people with any regularity. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The point was, Shisui had never sent a Valentine’s - or White Day reply - and he was fine with that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And then Ino came barrelling out of the academy with an armful of pink and a mullish expression crumpling her face and Shisui felt the oddest need to interrogate her entire year-group. And the one above and below for good measure.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He pasted on a smile just in time, ignoring Hana's wolfish smirk. Damned cocky teenagers.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey, Grumpy, what’s up?" Was Shisui’s accidentally-insensitive greeting. Ino, thankfully, was not fazed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't know what they </span>
  <em>
    <span>see</span>
  </em>
  <span> in him!" She exploded in return, shoving her burdens into Shisui’s arms, which automatically curled to catch them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"See in who?" He asked absentmindedly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And then he noticed his baby cousin, beleaguered with gifts and cards, dashing over to where Itachi was just rounding the corner.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Oh. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Ohhh –</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sensing Shisui’s gaze, the Uchiha Heir glanced over and caught his eye. His mouth trembled, minute to anyone else looking, through a discreet explanation. Shisui, relying on Itachi’s own skill with lipreading, responded in turn and waved off the younger's concerns. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What does it matter if Sasuke-chan got more?" Shisui asked, very nearly laughing at the absurdity of it all. Who had given his cousin a Valentine? Sasuke wasn't exactly friendly to strangers and he had no patience for people who… giggled. In fact, Shisui wouldn't be surprised if Sasuke only socialised with the Uchiha cousins attending the Academy with him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hana's little brother scrambled over, absolutely smeared with mud and with a beaming grin on his face. His own puppy was more brown than white, yipping in circles between the three older hounds, "Nee-chan, Akamaru nearly caught a squirrel!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hana, who had been watching the drama unfold beside her (</span>
  <em>
    <span>again)</span>
  </em>
  <span>, patted an absentminded hand on her brother's head, uncaring for the wet slop of his hair or the mud he was getting all over her legs. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"He's the size of a squirrel himself, puppy, so I hope you were backing him up."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Their conversation was drowned out by Ino's soap-box fervour, "Because he didn't even say thank you!" Ino flapped a hand, clearly distressed. "What a brat!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Kiba chimed his agreement, flashing his own teeth when Ino spared him a glance and a </span>
  <em>
    <span>'see</span>
  </em>
  <span>?' jerk of her head.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bolstered, Kiba continued with a kind of brassy confidence that frankly impressed the Uchiha. Until the words emerged, "You should have challenged him!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui's eyes popped in alarm. They didn't need Ino asserting dominance again like she used to do in the playground. "Inuzuka-kun, please don't enable her –"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>At that moment, Sakura came darting out of the door, school satchel slung over her shoulder and pink hair flying as she looked around frantically for her best friend. Shisui raised his free hand, Ino’s pink… stuff tucked into his elbow, and waved her over. The pinkette’s face broadcasted her relief.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Refusing to even think about indulging that last part, Shisui refocused on Ino's initial aggravation.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"If Sasuke-chan was impolite, that's on him," He reasoned. Mikoto would be having words with her youngest about manners and courtesy if it was indeed true, "You seem to have plenty," He jiggled the arm holding her haul pointedly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That's not the point," Ino muttered. She seemed strangely put out. Shisui, for a horrifying moment, allowed his mind to consider the factor of a more… personal jealousy. If his cousin had received attention from someone Ino herself cared about.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>She's too young.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And then-</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>I'm </span>
  <em>
    <span>too young.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sensei was going to </span>
  <em>
    <span>faint. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Sora was going to laugh scarily again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>At that moment, Sakura finally managed to squeeze through the crowds of parents and children, her pink hair darkened from its natural pastel and dripping slightly on her shoulders. She forgot, for once, to greet Shisui first and made a beeline for her best friend. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ino-chan!" Sakura grabbed the blonde's arm and tugged until Ino turned towards her. In her other, a handmade box with a shiny lilac ribbon was tucked protectively against her chest. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I was going to wait until lunch but then we sat with Chouji-kun and – well, </span>
  <em>
    <span>here –</span>
  </em>
  <span>!" She shoved the box forwards, a crimson blush burning across the bridge of her nose. "Happy Valentine's day," She squeaked, all out of bravery.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ino's indignation disappeared with a snap, awe and joy lighting up her face with the force of a lightning strike.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui, still awkwardly holding her other gifts and the umbrella over an avid Hana, gawked. Oh, </span>
  <em>
    <span>no, no –</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Thank you so much, Sakura-chan!" Ino cradled the box like she might have a teddy bear. Neither girl seemed to care about the torrential rain soaking them to the bone, "I'll get you something for White Day, I promise!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui's expression had frozen somewhere between incredulity and horror. They were nine, they were too young, he wasn't ready for this shit –</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>This felt like panic.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hana snorted. Loudly. Hand to her face, eyes crinkled in humour, the fourteen-year-old openly enjoyed his distress. Her brother had crinkled his nose at the theatrics. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Enjoy the drama," She cackled.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui shamelessly retracted the umbrella over her.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>……………………………………………………</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The lines were like liquid fire, white-hot across the delicate skin of his eyelids. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui, jaw clenched, remained absolutely still. No groans left his lips, not even a flutter of his lashes. Except for the barest rise and fall of his breathing, he was a statue.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hiromi's wizened fingers drew across the skin without falter, slow and steady as if guided by some greater force. They were in the back room of her shop, the Jounin half-lying down on her adjustable bench with the fuinjutsu master perched on a nearby stool.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She wasn't using a brush - Shisui had, actually, yet to see her do so - but she was using an instrument. Evidently tattoos needed something a little more permanent than her fingernail. The pen had a small tube for ink attached to the base like a long snake, the whirl of the tiny compression valve fading in with the sounds of the rain against the roof.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They were utterly silent. Hiromi didn't even try to make small talk that neither of them were interested in. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And, slowly, the snow-white lines of sealwork took shape.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>("Protection," Hiromi trailed a slow fingertip along the sheets of graphic design. It was nonsense to Shisui but he dutifully listened to her explanation anyway. "This will prevent attacks, regardless of your own state or consciousness, and it covers from brow bone to cheekbone. The entire eye-socket. Even some tricky and messy surgery won't reap results unless it's myself or your lovely Aunt." Her cackle was somehow reassuring. Her utter lack of self-doubt, inspiring.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It won't impact my Sharingan?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her grin was satisfied, the cat that got the cream, canary and the fish without being caught. "Boy-o, you could walk through glass wind with your eyes open if you wanted to. The rest of you might not fare quite so well! The medics cleared you?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Perfect health."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"There's a stasis element. They won't diminish from this moment onwards, even if you wind up like me, old and bent."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He swallowed hard. "And my Mangekyou?" If his eyes developed the Dojutsu chronic blindness despite all of this, if they had to operate…?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"They're your eyes, Boy-o. I protected them from others; they would never be barred from you. Now, get up on that chair already. I'm old and we don't wait well.")</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Despite the pain, this felt like </span>
  <em>
    <span>confidence.</span>
  </em>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>A/N-</p><p>Me, shaking a tambourine with all the finesse and musicality of a five year old: iiiiiiiiits…. Trauma time! </p><p>Sakura and Ino: I'm not shipping them for real, I'm not in the habit of romanticising CHILDREN but I did think this was a very cute little growing up thing because the girls might not have hormones etc but they do have the romantic concept of crushes etc to play around with. Will this actually grow into something as they age? Who knows :3</p><p>Also I wanted to smack shisui with the reminder that Ino is growing up </p><p>Hiromi does tattoos… did no-one see this coming? </p><p>She did Tobirama's stripes to protect his albino skin from the sun damage lmao she can deffo give shisui white catliner to stop eye snatchers &gt;:3 </p><p>Basically, before people go nuts for the caged bird etc, Hiromi spent a MONTH crafting this puppy for shisui. Im not gonna have it rolled out in force because I really fucking doubt the other uchiha are gonna look at this old blind not-an-uchiha woman and say yes???? Nah… Shisui's seal tattoo basically makes it so that he won't get damage to his eyes and lids in a fight, anything from someone trying to grab them again to sharp shrapnel, and when he dies no-one but mikoto or Itachi etc will be able to take them out for his burial etc etc basically it helps him feel much more protected from a repeat of the event that gave him all this trauma. Cool side affect is that shisui can keep his eyes open in the middle of a sandstorm now. And, regarding what if looks like… google white eyeliner, specifically runway shows or the alien mugler perfume ad with the model in the desert ...think thin white liner basically. Unobtrusive, simple, sick aesthetic &gt;:3 Hehehehehehhehehehe </p><p>Me: shisui gets therapy!<br/>Me: shisui starts tackling his problems!<br/>Me: he has the same highs and lows as everyone else fighting the long fight!<br/>Me: wait he has the same highs and lows as everyone else fighting the long fight?? ANGST???</p><p>(to those people fighting the invisible fight, keep going! YOURE DOING AMAZING SWEETIE)</p><p>I’m drafting this chapter 01/12, the day after NaNoWriMo finished and i managed to write just less than 70K! yay!!</p><p>Me to Shisui: don't worry baby you're gonna get some help… andthatincludessufferingthroughyourdemonsshhhh<br/>Shisui: Ahhh okay (っ´▽`).....wait ⊙_⊙ what was that last bit-<br/>Me: *stroking his head* SHHHHH</p><p>Me: mentions avoiding somethign liek the plague<br/>Me: but we know thats a fuckign lie</p><p>Shisui: LOVE YOURSELF, EVERYONE IS PERFECT AS THEY ARE, BE GENTLE, BE KIND<br/>Shisui brain: except you<br/>Shisui: yes, except me</p><p>Ino: I'm gonna fight<br/>Shisui: please don't do this-<br/>Kiba: do it!<br/>Shisui: I'll never be trusted as an adult again-<br/>Hana: *cups hand around mouth* AIM FOR THE CROTCH</p><p>Also yes I do write that everyone is a little in love with Tenzo it's *what he deserves*</p><p>Also Hana is only fourteen, Shisui would NEVER flirt with her, she was just asserting dominance by controlling the vibe and humour etc as well as roasting him because of the cliche on VALENTINES DAY lol</p><p>Kat, reading this: wow! Depressed Shisui is depressed!</p><p>Edit (12/01): I wanna write a brand new naruto fic (don't worry, it won't interrupt my shisui projects) but I cant pick a character to focus on so please comment your thoughts</p><p>So far the front-runners are</p><p>Savvy civilian-raised Sakura is a BAMF at human interaction and accidentally saves the world because of it<br/>Neji gets around his Clan's controlling behaviour by petitioning to become a medic nin<br/>Exploring how Lee can be so bamf without functioning chakra pathways etc includes all of Gai's friends intervening because they're terrified he's found a way to clone himself<br/>Matriarchal Inuzuka Clan means Kiba is a feminist and befriends every single scary girl at school, starts a revolution and accidentally saves everyone</p><p>Please make sure to subscribe and comment!</p><p>Find me on tumblr as x-authorship-x and my askbox is always open :3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Direction</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>"I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination." <br/>- Jimmy Dean</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>After Hiromi-sensei's sealing procedure, Shisui locked himself away with a bag of groceries and an excuse about a cold.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The next two days were spent holed up in his parent's house, the doors and windows tightly shut to allow his delicate eyes a chance to become reaccustomed.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>After being worked on, tattoos became inflamed and fuinjutsu ones doubly so, needing time to realign with his chakra system. When the sight of natural sunlight didn't make him weep, Shisui finally ducked outside into the clean, open air.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Hiromi’s sealwork was flawless, snow-white and crisply defined against his delicate, pale skin. The lines were almost invisible in certain lights, slightly raised swooping curves that traced his upper lash-line and turned sharply upwards from the outer corner over the mound of his brow-bone in the crease of his socket. The marks were permanently visible and, to a Hyuuga, would glimmer like laylines.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Wondering who would drag him before the Hokage first - a Main Branch Hyuuga or his own Clansmen -, Shisui decided to get the initial reaction out of the way and head straight to the Station.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>On the way over - by foot, Hiromi having given him strict orders to avoid aggravating the sealwork with jutsu for four days at least - Shisui garnered a few lingering glances. The lines appeared like interesting eyeliner, however, so he repressed the impulse to hurry under the weight of such attention. Exuding calm was far better protection, far more convincing, from people twigging to what he’d done than scurrying around like a guilty sewer rat.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Station, as it always was this time of morning, was busy with the flurry of shift changes. Shisui, unashamedly taking advantage of the confusion, slipped between the congregated officers, camouflaged by his dark clothes and obvious Uchiha features like a wolf cub in a litter of puppies. Head low, without looking like he was sulking ashamedly, the Jounin wove his way towards Itachi’s cubby desk. Naturally, his arrival did not go unnoticed but, as the concept of ‘normal’ evolved with the passing months, his presence had become a familiar burden in these halls. He visited his cousin and Uncle enough to garner barely the briefest of glances now.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Those looks lingered longer today, the Uchiha eyes, even with the Sharingan deactivated, sensitive enough to drag along his features and sense that something had changed beyond superficial linework. The protections in his tattoos were self-arming; they wouldn't trigger a ward or an awareness, much like the Nidaime’s wouldn't have. The parallel was sobering… </span>
  <em>
    <span>intimidating</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui pasted a genial expression on his face, meeting some of those gazes with slightly quirked brows and a bland smile as if daring them to speak, and continued across to the smaller form of his cousin, hunched  over a pile of reports. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Itachi, sensing his approach, glanced up with a subtly pleased expression that immediately melted askance. Shisui came to a stop before his desk, hands in the pockets of his purple vest. "Good morning," the Uchiha Heir intoned with underlying caution.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui’s eyebrows crept a little higher in amusement. Okay, but this was a little entertaining. He felt… different, had felt that way ever since Hiromi’s stylus had lifted and he’d been allowed to carefully peel his eyes open to see the blurred ceiling of her workshop.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was as if he’d been walking around in a thin, paper hospital robe and now he was in his armour. Like he’d been barefoot and now his feet were carefully shod. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Security. Protection. Shelter. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(The trauma wasn't so easily shed.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But… he felt prepared. Like he had driftwood to cling to or an umbrella in the downpour.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Something that unwound the knot of paranoid insecurity in the back of his throat.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He didn't feel any different - </span>
  <em>
    <span>physically</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Which made the psychological transformation all the more miraculous. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Good morning," he replied, deliberately pitching his tone so that the eavesdroppers could clearly hear every word. "You sleep okay?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Itachi nodded carefully, still staring. Half of his fringe was pinned back with sleek silver pins and one hand was slightly smudged with ink. Evidently he’d been writing left-handed today. "Yes," his eyes flickered slightly before, making a decision based upon the ease of Shisui’s posture, boldly asking; "Are you wearing makeup?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui’s mouth stretched wider. Conversation around them had dipped suspiciously. "Why?" He fluttered his naturally long lashes teasingly, sooty black stark against the frosted script. "Does it suit me?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>This, of course, was not the end of the matter.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The next day, when he entered the front doors of the ANBU building, the Hyuuga on guard jerked upright as if shocked with a Raiton jutsu. Her mask denoted her as Panda and Shisui didn't even waste time asking for clarification when she immediately abandoned her post to approach. He knew this was coming, had intentionally holed up in the Compound to avoid crossing paths with her and her kin.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Still, the moment of confrontation had come, Panda having wrapped her small hand around his elbow like an iron band and insistently jerked them both down the corridor to Boar’s office. "Monkey-san," her higher tone was tight with an unidentified emotion, "you are required to explain yourself to Commander-sama."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui kept the slope of his shoulders relaxed and allowed the petit woman to drag him behind her. He didn't want to incriminate himself any further by appearing unwilling or antagonistic towards her. But, he also couldn't resist. Even if he now bore steals around his eyes, they were obviously completedly unrelated to the damned slavery seal the Hyuuga wielded. "But not to you? Will you inform your Clan of my personal business?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Her fingers bit in deeper. Shisui wasn't sure if it was a reflex on her part or born of a desire to maul him. Either was likely. "You have sealed your eyes."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui flashed his teeth. It wasn't a smile. "There is no monopoly on the action." Maybe he was being harsh but, </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck,</span>
  </em>
  <span> he hadn't been enslaved, either by his Clan or others, like the Hyuuga did to their own flesh and blood. To say he was repulsed by the practice was an understatement. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But it was considered a Clan matter and, therefore, beyond the reach of outsiders.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Boar took one look at his eyes, the grip Panda had on his arm, and told him to “fucking report”. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As he had bet on, nothing came from the meeting; Boar was satisfied that Shisui had taken what she considered the 'initiative' to protect his most valuable weapon and Panda was begrudgingly mollified that her Clan’s sealing secrets hadn't been stolen - </span>
  <em>
    <span>somehow</span>
  </em>
  <span> - by the Sharingan to be used against the Hyuuga. Her standing in the Uchiha Jounin’s eyes did suffer, however.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In the days following the confrontation, Shisui was faced with a medley of responses. Genma, and by extension the rest of the Squad, thought very little of it. Shisui had briefly explained that the tattoos were security measures to prevent his grandfather’s fate from becoming a family tradition and they had all swallowed the platitude hook, line and sinker. Genma commented that Shisui’s eyeliner was surprisingly skillfully done in the common room later that day and the ANBU gossips were satisfied. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Raidou, who had helped Hiromi set up her inking stylus, had said nothing. None of this was a surprise, after all.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Tenzo had looked flummoxed - as much as he was able to visibly convey the emotion, that is - which then transformed into heart-wrenching concern. Evidently triggered by his own fuinjutsu experiences, Shisui had taken a few moments to reassure him in an aside, with Raidou backing him up by launching into all the amazing things Hiromi was teaching him. Fears assuaged, Shisui had left them to it.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Ino took one look at him and her eyes fairly went supernova with excitement. "Can you teach me how to do that too?!" She squealed loud enough to threaten the integrity of all surrounding eardrums, all but wringing his hand between hers as a way to express just how taken she was with her brother’s new ‘look’. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, who had never been interested in makeup in his life but had seen Mikoto and Sora apply it plenty of times, had been at loss to do anything but agree. Mentally, he made a note to track down some white eyeliner as a cover as to why he didn't actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>own</span>
  </em>
  <span> any. At least, for now, he could argue that Ino couldn't share his for the risk of an eye infection. Small mercies.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Uchiha Elders, surprisingly, were both apocalyptically enraged by his audacity as much as they were unphased by his ‘lashing out’. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, for one, had dared allow a non-Uchiha into such delicate close-quarters with his precious Mangekyou. As the second and only current Uchiha with the evolved Sharingan in the Clan, they were incredibly invested in keeping his abilities close to their metaphorical chest. Their possessiveness over his own damned eyes grated, especially considering the little respect they awarded him as a person. Sometimes, he felt like he was just a handy little Mangekyou-carrier, like the box that kept a weapon safe. The sheath of his Sharingan.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At the same time, Shisui had, as far as they were aware, just put a protective layer around that very weapon. A permanent feature too. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"You should have presented your plans to the Council first, you selfish boy!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"-could have done anything in such a vulnerable position! How do we know that woman didn't curse him-?!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Silence! Shunshin, explain yourself properly instead of sulking like a child! You're a Jounin of the Noble Uchiha, comport yourself with some dignity-"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Needless to say, Shisui excused himself from the Elder meeting prematurely, citing his busy schedule. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Mikoto traced careful fingers over her nephew's eyelids, leaning over their usual spread of tea on the engawa, and said nothing beyond commenting that he looked lovely. Her smile was both tender and viciously satisfied.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Sandaime had sat opposite him behind his desk. His fingers were oh so carefully folded against the fall of his robes as he watched the younger man silently for a long moment. Then, finally-</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Do you fear for your safety, Shisui-kun?" </span>
  <em>
    <span>Do you consider Konoha unsafe for your bloodline?</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui's pacifying smile had been wan. He was thoroughly done with all these reactions and questions.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"To be a shinobi," he replied diplomatically,  "is to be prepared."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Sandaime had nothing to say to that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>…………………….……………………………………….</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>One evening, when they were both exhausted from work and Shisui's  phobia treatment had thoroughly wiped them both out, Inoichi and Shisui found themselves tucked into the Yamanaka Head’s office at home.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The room was lit with the dim glow of one hooded desk lamp, the engawa open to allow the pale evening light to filter through across the exposed floor. The sky outside was flushed in pastel blues and pinks, clouds like hydrangea bushes around the fringes of the valley. The sun had set, dinner had been eaten, but the darkness of nighttime had yet to eclipse the village. The days were notably longer with every one that passed, straddling that transition from Winter to Spring. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was mid-March.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, knowing exactly where to find it, pulled a bottle of Fruit-Country peach spirit from the bottom draw of Inoichi’s desk whilst the man himself lounged tiredly on a pillow, propped up against the opening to the garden. Conversation had been scarce this evening, dinner dominated by mother and daughter as they chattered animatedly about their days. For the sensei and student, such stillness belied the ease of each other's company. There was no pressure to speak. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The blonde looked over when Shisui cracked the wax on the cork, the seal peeling satisfyingly away from the smooth glass nozzle. His kunai gently traced the rim with the faintest scratch as he pried the cork free. Inoichi's expression, eyes half-lidded in tiredness and peace of mind, warmed with amusement. "What’s the occasion?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui flashed a smile, his features cast in shadow by the lamp near his elbow. He pinched two shot glasses and carried his prizes back over. Resettling on his own cushion with a sigh, he extended one glass. Inoichi accepted it. "It’s been a hard day," he began to pour. "I’d say we deserved a treat, sensei."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(As they clinked their glasses, neglecting to voice a toast, and sipped the sweet, burning liquor, Shisui mentally offered prayers to whatever power had brought him here.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>What an odd world it was.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Happy Four Months of Living.</span>
  </em>
  <span>)</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>…………………….……………………………………….</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Having succeeded in sitting in a bath, water lapping at the curve of his shoulders as he slumped down in a tub that was a little too small for someone his height, Shisui was finally given the green-light to attempt the jutsu that had evaded him so… totally.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, when he'd first been handed a piece of chakra-conductive paper, had been dual-natured with Fire and Lightning from the start. As someone who relied on speed, he'd encorporated Wind into his arsenal.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He was fucking crap with Earth.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But water… he could hope to try.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There was an odd overlap between Wind and Water jutsu. If you controlled the air around a stream of water, you could theoretically move it without actually controlling the water itself. On the flipside, you could draw moisture from the air… you could crush an air jutsu with enough force behind a water attack. You could… drown someone's lungs… with enough force that a wind jutsu couldn't save them…</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui didn't want to rely on his weaker, learned, third nature.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He wanted an understanding of a fourth. It was a stronger bet as much as an investment.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Controlling water instead of evading it… would be so much better in the long run.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They practised every day. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui wasn't allowed, in case he regressed and needed saving (as Tenzo had had to that day in the Naka), to go down to the water alone. Therefore, their practises were designated to the evenings, after dinner. Inoichi, who had a nine-to-five job and a family, had set that ground rule.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, who was still training with Gai every morning and taking village guard sweeps in the night hours, was fine with that.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(He had finally worked out a routine that saw him hit six hours of sleep, roughly, a night. Maybe appalling to most people but a genuine achievement for Shisui.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was the twentieth of March when he finally succeeded.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Water Breath jutsu pulled a funnel of water into a controlled, micro-whirlpool from the surface to the user's mouth. The air opening, if used skillfully, could be as small and undetectable as a finger's width.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>To feel water suctioning around his mouth… it was no wonder that Shisui had struggled so long.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was raining that evening, the dim light made all the darker by the heavy quilt of rainclouds swaddling the sky from horizon to horizon. The rain was a light spray, barely visible to civilian eyes, but relentless throughout the day. The surface of the Naka rippled from the droplets, the faintest pitter-patter around their shoulders.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Both student and sensei were up to their armpits in the river's current, Inoichi’s hands clamped securely around Shisui’s elbows as the Jounin lifted his own in preparation for the handsigns. If he started freaking out, the older man would easily get him back to the surface and/or shoreline. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Slowly, teeth clenched as if controlling his breathing could control his fears or the greater situation, Shisui allowed Inoichi to tug them both a little further into the main body of the river. The water lapped at his neck, which tensed with tendons taunt against his pale flesh, and then licked up around his earrings… up his chin… over his mouth.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His eyes stared, unblinking, into Inoichi’s calm aqua ones and, without wasting a moment, Shisui’s hands fluttered through the handsigns he’d memorised with his Sharingan from Tenzo so many months ago.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The water swirled oddly, poorly controlled and affected by the rainfall disrupting the surface and the close proximity of their two bodies, but quickly pressed a breathing funnel against his mouth.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Heart hammering louder than the roaring water around them, so hard that Shisui was physically jolted by the force of each pounding beat, the Uchiha cracked his mouth open.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The water did not gush to fill the vacuum as it had that night. It did not burn his throat and lungs, did not press him down and tear him asunder-</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He breathed in sweet, fresh air, and-</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>-something shifted.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(He needed to practice. On dry land, Inoichi grabbed him in a tight embrace and nearly swung him off his feet before pulling a list of water jutsu from his notebook and insisting Shisui perfect the water breath before working his way down the list. He had taken another step.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>That night, he dreamt of water again.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He didn't wake up screaming, though.)</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>…………………….……………………………………….</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In April, Kakashi returned from his string of solo assassinations in Bear Country and, with all his incredibly niche predictability, immediately claimed Naruto Watch.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Seeing as the poor man had been away from Konoha for the better part of two months, the entirety of Squad Two assumed the duty without fanfare. Raidou made excuses to Hiromi for the handful of weekdays he’d be absent for, Tenzo doing the same to Yamanaka Gen. Shisui, far more gleefully that the others, informed the Elders that he’d been recalled for a mission and they’d just have to make do without him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>How </span>
  <em>
    <span>tragic.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Four days completely free from his Clan drama sounded like bliss.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>However, this rotation of Naruto Watch, just to be contrary, did not prove very 'blissful' and it was a testament of Shisui's eagerness to return to duty that he had even expected anything else in the first place.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Their shift started out well, hunched for hours under delicate layerings of genjutsu - that felt no different from before the tattoos, Shisui was pleased to note - as the skies attempted to flood their valley to its brim. Kakashi had yet to see Shisui’s new facial markings, absent as he had been, but seemed to need not even the briefest explanation when his eye finally flitted over the lines. If he did have questions, he would go about them in his own way; nothing so plebeian as </span>
  <em>
    <span>asking.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was a Tuesday, meaning that they could expect to be done around Friday, and Naruto was at school. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui occupied himself with a scroll on suiton nature type, trying to familiarise himself with the way his chakra was supposed to flow and flex when utilising that particular nature, whilst tucked into the ceiling of the academy. Outside the window, Raidou’s pen was blazing across his own paperwork as he frantically tried to keep up with the calligraphic activities Hiromi insisted he needed to perfect before she allowed him anywhere near a sealing brush. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tenzo was doing a little crochet, the ball of yarn and single hook easier to efficiently tuck away if anything happened. Shisui absently wondered which of the Base Children the scarf was intended for this time. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Kakashi, sharpening his kunai and repacking his first-aid pouch - he had really wasted no time in seeing his sensei’s child, having requested the duty as soon as he’d finished giving his own oral report - kept a sharp eye on the students from his perch beneath a bush visible from the classroom window. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Genma filed his nails and heaved huge, bored sighs like some tragic poet.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Nothing happened on Tuesday, besides a rather entertaining spectacle when Chouji-kun was forced to piggyback a deeply slumbering Shikamaru to lunch. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Wednesday was equally forgettable. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>On Thursday, Naruto went food shopping and Raidou was the one to slink down to intimidate the shop proprietor into allowing him access to the most basic of supplies. The scenario was emotionally draining in its regularity. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>On Friday, the day started off poorly when Kakashi and Shisui were forced to slink down to the alleyway outside of the apartment building and hail two Uchiha Officers to arrest three men for drunken disorderly behaviour. They had obviously been planning to muck around with some bricks below Naruto's flat window but, seeing as they’d been apprehended before they could actually commit their intentions, they would spend a night in the drunk tank and face a probable fine and warning. It was… frustrating.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>No, the real fuck-up of the rotation was when Shisui took his turn to do their food run.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>By popular vote, they’d decided upon ramen take-away, wanting the rich and warming broth in such miserable weather. By route of convenience, Shisui had ducked inside Ichiraku, under a genjutsu to appear in his regular clothing and to hide his seals.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The stall smelled divine, glowing with welcoming lantern-light like a shrine in the rain-darkened afternoon. They were eating a little late, having waited until the academy children had finished their own break before dropping their guard by one. They’d learned long ago that, with Naruto, freedom of movement spelled trouble and to never be too cautious.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And yet, sometimes, things surprised them anyway.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Two pork, one shrimp and two chicken, please," Shisui smiled, rubbing his hands together to chase off the encroaching chill of the weather. Even Fire-natured, he felt a chill in his bones from three days crouched in the unfaltering drizzle. The rain adublity dappled over their heads through the thick tarpaulin and wooden supports. "To go," he tagged on before he forgot.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The chef, a jovial man who was always unstintingly hospitable, beamed back at him. "It'll be a few moments, Uchiha-san!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Nodding, Shisui fished for his money and waited in the back corner of the stall, letting those patrons eating at the bench sit in peace without him breathing down their necks. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The street outside was busy, as expected. Brightly coloured umbrellas drifting about, spots of pigment in the washed out landscape.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Mentally, Shisui crossed his fingers that the weather would dry up soon. Whilst Konoha wasn't unaccustomed to rainy seasons, they were inching closer to summer and, if those months were not as scorchingly dry as normal, they would know that the weather was genuinely screwed. Also, as sticky as the heat was, Shisui preferred it to the lingering scent of dampness when it rained so thoroughly. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Then, he blinked in genuine astonishment, when Tenzo’s signature fluttered directly overhead.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Resisting the urge to snap his head around in his teammate’s direction, Shisui flickered his chakra core through the ANBU emergency sequence.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His breathing, frozen somewhere between his crushed lungs and desert-dry throat, returned when Tenzo replied in negative. But then </span>
  <em>
    <span>why-</span>
  </em>
  <span>?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And then a small figure, skipping school so boldly, scurried inside.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Yo, old man!" The blonde kid grinned, traipsing dirty puddle-water all over the well-cared for hardwood flooring. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He stopped with a jerk at the sight of Shisui.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Kakashi landed on the beam directly above and behind the Uchiha, his presence both a balm and a threat at the vulnerable space between his shoulderblades. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Blue eyes met genjutsu-ed black and didn't tear themselves away.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"It’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span>," the blonde’s tone was borderline accusing, absent of all uncertainty.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui very nearly took a step back. Naruto… remembered that tiny interaction.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He daren't speak aloud but – "Happy birthday," he mouthed, flashing a wink before immediately averting his gaze to the crowds around them.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Uchiha-san, your order!" Teuchi-san broke their stalemate with his loud call, snapping Shisui to attention as he automatically accepted the bag with a nod.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He paused over the money, the attention of his entire Squad and their charge burning into the back of his head. Naruto, for once, seemed utterly bereft of words.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He pulled out more than necessary and, when Teuchi counted the extra with raised brows, nodded to the blonde child still dripping near the entrance. "Lunch on me."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Naruto’s hearing was better than he quite realised. "Wha- </span>
  <em>
    <span>why</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" He snapped before Shisui could slip out between the hangings. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui bit the inside of his mouth and met Naruto’s bright sapphire eyes for the scantest second. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Taichou, don't kill me</span>
  </em>
  <span>. "Orphan solidarity."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He left before he could break policy any further, almost ripping his genjutsu away and flinging the pots of ramen at his various Squadmates. Kakashi, accepting his, managed the jerkiest of nods. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They didn't talk about what Shisui had done.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>None of them mentioned the incident in their reports.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(And, if Naruto peered into the faces of </span>
  <em>
    <span>Uchiha </span>
  </em>
  <span>Officers in the street like he was looking for someone, it was none of their business.)</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>…………………….……………………………………….</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The itch returned.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui rained blows on Gai and parried those sent in return. He cut his teeth and sharpened his mind in the long siege of wills between the Sandaime and the Uchiha Elders. He turned the problems with the Danzo case over in his mind night and day, circling the village on ANBU patrols until the wee hours of the morning. Practised basic water jutsu until the unfamiliar flex of suiton felt more and more routine. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He turned flower beds alongside Sora on the weekends, solid hard labour that left a satisfying ache, all without the aid of chakra. He picked Ino up from school and chatted amicably with Sakura-chan, took tea with Mikoto as regularly as clockwork and looked over the bills she was amending. He trained with Itachi and delivered him surprise dango by tricking Akira into playing errand-bird. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He went food shopping with Tenzo and played cards with Genma and Raidou, chatted with Kakashi over the coffee machine.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Sleep evaded him less absolutely, the night-terrors morphing into blurred distresses that were no longer potent enough to rid him of all rest every night. The busy nature of his schedule aided him there, keeping him so tired that he woke stiff-limbed, so exhausted he had barely even shifted in slumber. Such weariness was its own burden but, compared to what he’d once had to deal with, an infinitely more tolerable one. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui dealt, recovered, until the end of April.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Then, one morning, he woke up and stared at his ceiling in the ANBU dorms and-</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Hm.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He dressed in his usual training gear, sealing an extra water bottle into his pack, and left for training with Gai.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Their dynamic was as savage as usual, an earthquake of blows exchanged faster than the average Sharingan could follow. They had, months ago, changed the way they pulled punches, understanding that they had to put more power into each attack than they might have with others. Shisui had been put into the hospital more than once but, then, the consolation was that so had </span>
  <em>
    <span>Gai</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Gai's punches had snapped his ribs like twigs. Shisui's retaliation had neatly dislocated the other man's jaw; their walk to the emergency room had been the longest period of silence between them. Ever.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Still, even as the sun crept along the sky until it was directly overhead, as they grappled and rolled, both blindfolded with one hand secured to the smalls of their backs, as sweat dripped and muscles began to tremble, that </span>
  <em>
    <span>itch</span>
  </em>
  <span> didn't </span>
  <em>
    <span>dissipate</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Gai crushed him in a parting hug, joyful at their joint improvement with fighting sensory-handicapped, and Shisui was left to waddle to his Uchiha house for a shower and meal before the day’s duties caught up to him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Yet, when he’d staggered from cleaning up and getting redressed, his feet didn't lead him to the Elders or T&amp;I or even the Tower.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was mid-way through the civilian working week. Shisui didn't particularly care, suddenly, what he’d had lined up for the day. He needed… </span>
  <em>
    <span>something</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was </span>
  <em>
    <span>maddening.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He found himself walking into the ANBU building, pointedly ignoring Panda where he once might have acknowledged her, and scampering up the flights of stairs leading to his floor. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>With a brief scan, he confirmed that none of his Squad were around at the moment and, therefore, couldn't talk him out of it. He slipped into his room, uncomfortably aware of Tiger huddled incredibly close to Wolf in one of their dorms on the other side of the building, and slipped into his uniform, clipping on his mask last.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The training spaces were in the basement, so that Rookies being weeded out weren't unintentionally exposed to the other areas. They came in through the tunnels and never came any higher. Unless they were particularly savvy, Shisui doubted most of them even knew which of the office blocks in this area they were being housed in. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui had been down there multiple times in recent months, having discovered that beating trainees black and blue was cathartic for someone unable to return to active duty. These Rookies, still only potentials, were not privy to the wider secrets of ANBU so they did not know real names and they never saw each other or other operatives without their official uniforms and masks intact. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Despite that, it was an open secret that their main handler, Hare, was Inuzuka Machi. And that their guest trainer, Monkey, was Shunshin no Shisui.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Shisui’s skill with genjutsu was a ringer. When he first used Shunshin in combat, he had almost heard the realisation click throughout the viewing hall.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Machi, who kept her ninken out of the training halls, growled far too fluidly to be anyone else… the spring-balanced sword-prosthetics of her amputated legs were also notorious.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The ANBU training halls were, in a word, cavernous. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui could, uneasily, see where Danzo had drawn his own base’s inspiration from.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The walls were solid concrete, the floors hard packed earth that would be marginally more forgiving than falling on stone and would also allow for a greater variety of techniques. The hall was a single room, with a small canteen on one side and a shower dorm in the other. The trainees arrived every day at dawn and were dismissed around ten hours later; anything more extensive required a training trip beyond the village borders. They didn't stay the night because many had Clan responsibilities or jobs that required attention. They saw the outside world.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Unlike ROOT operatives.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>When Shisui arrived, just a little after twelve noon, it was to find the trainees gathered around Hare as she demonstrated how to handle being outnumbered. Naturally, shinobi learned lessons like this in strategy and in the field in every rank but, with ANBU, everything became a little… different. That bit cleaner, more nuanced, and all the more gory.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She eviscerated all three shadow clones with her left leg, the sharp blades sliding through faux-flesh with sickening ease. Shisui had seen her carve through a Great Fire with one swipe before.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Attention shifted towards Shisui when he unfurled the mild genjutsu and seemingly appeared from nowhere beside Hare. More than a few visibly jumped and Shisui took mental notes of their identification codes. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Monkey," Hare inclined her head mockingly. She sounded nearly unnervingly similar to Hana, if older, and Shisui counted it down to being the young Chuunin’s Aunt. "Here to lend yourself to a demonstration?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Monkey returned the gesture but kept his eyes scanning the fifteen potentials gathered before them. Uneven sparring matches sounded… perfect. "They can try their luck."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Understanding what he was suggesting, Hare immediately turned to her students. "1123, 6401, 2755 prepare yourselves; the rest of you, take the viewing bay. Three on one, you’re allowed to work together." All trainees besides the three listed made a mad dash for the ledge of the arena and the trio left behind shuffled a little closer together. Hare drawled over the rest of the rules - no kill-shots or serious bodily harm, all poisons must have an antidote on hand, no fleeing, match ended with unconsciousness or forfeit or when Hare decided that the agent was theoretically KIA - and Shisui pulled off his regulation gloves, preferring skin contact when he was going to enjoy a match-up. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>1123 was a tall figure, male from the pronouns on his label, but whippet thin. Shisui didn't recognise his particular shade of green hair and drew the logical conclusion that he was of civilian descent - all the more impressive, having to work for everything. His equipment was limited but did include a long coil of serrated chain which could prove entertaining provided he was imaginative.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Of a similar height to their new ally, 6401 (they/them) was broader in the shoulder and had tawny hair shaved so close to their scalp it appeared little more than a velvet buzz over their skin. They had two battle axes crossed between their shoulderblades and the arm-wrappings of a Taijutsu practitioner.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>2755 was a Nara, made incredibly obvious from the shock of dark coffee-brown hair thrown up in a short tail on her head and the natural slump of her posture. Even a trainee's nerves and ANBU regulation couldn't hammer out a spine made wonky from a lifetime of slumping over. She had no visible specialisations but Shisui didn't file her away as lesser for it; she was a Nara, and they were never to be underestimated. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Set?" Hare glanced between the trio, waiting until she'd received a shaky nod from all of them. She wasn't interested in Shisui's reply. He didn't need her to be. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>With a push of her powerful legs and a burst of chakra, she lept - ironically like her namesake - to the far side of the hall, landing on the lip of concrete about twenty feet from the floor and making her way to stand close to the huddle of trainees. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"And - </span>
  <em>
    <span>match</span>
  </em>
  <span>!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui immediately activated his Sharingan, lunging aside in a blur of motion as 1123 grappled with his chain and swung it like a lasso in a swooping arc. When it swung past again - </span>
  <em>
    <span>predictable</span>
  </em>
  <span> - Shisui decided to have a little fun with him and caught it with his bare hands. Coating them in chakra, Shisui thrust lightning down the length of steel links, violent enough to hurt even through the ANBU gear gloves.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>1123 dropped his own weapon, the material across his palms burned straight through to the pink skin beneath, and ducked behind 6401 as they lunged forwards. He’d struggle to form a basic fist with electrical burns like that. So </span>
  <em>
    <span>easy</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Hare wouldn't be impressed. Even a basic earth jutsu to ground the charge…</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>6401 came through with a swing of their dual axes, skilled enough to understand that two weapons should rarely travel in tandem, and chased Shisui when he lept backwards to get some reach. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Uchiha unsheathed the tantō from his shoulders and, pushing his movements quicker than the trainee could see, flicked both axes aside with his modest blade. The axes followed through with the diverted momentum, forcing 6401 into a tight turn that brought both weapons in a secondary swoop, one at the height to cut across Shisui’s throat and the other perfectly positioned to gut him in a single motion.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Impressed at them keeping their wits, Shisui lashed out before either could hit and punted the trainee straight across into the far wall with a kick to the chest. If they were good enough to maintain dignity, they deserved to be pushed harder. Before they could crash, however, their shadow was snatched by the resident Nara, forcing them to a stop but working with gravity and their momentum to swing them back to their feet a fair distance away.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Teamwork, huh. Shisui glanced at the Nara crouched low and spat a fireball directly towards her. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The flames cast odd shadows, stretching both of their shadows into the distance behind them and away from each other, and the trainee was forced to roll through the dirt to escape the inferno pressing down on her position. When she came up, Shisui was waiting, grabbing one arm to fling her straight at 6401 just as they came into striking distance. The duo fell heavily, rolling together, and 1123 finally got over his wounds enough to try again.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Deciding against aggravating the burns on his palms, the trainee launched forward with a high kick and then, when Shisui swayed past it, dropped into a textbook sweep.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As the leg came under him, Shisui stomped down hard and shattered 1123's kneecap.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His screams rang in the air, nearly concealing Hare’s loud shout as Shisui leaned and grabbed the trainee by his throat meaningfully; “KIA 1123! Swap with 3985!”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui left 1123 where he was, taking the spar a little further away to give the watching Medic a chance to grab their patient. In those brief seconds, as a stocky brunette dropped into the edge of the ring, Shisui wove a genjutsu of the remaining two trainees. They started panicking and struggling against each other as the floor seemingly slowly turned to quicksand and sucked them into its depths; they’d pass out quickly as the brain was tricked into thinking itself bereft of oxygen. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was barely two minutes since they’d started.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The brunette reached Shisui with the minute whistle of a barrage of shuriken just as Hare called for 6401 and 2755 to evacuate the arena and for two more to take their place. 3985 was evidently a distance fighter, surprisingly adjusting the movements of their airborne weaponry with chakra-strings of all things when Shisui knocked them aside with the dull edge of his tantō. They might have made a little game of it if they’d been able to flee.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui moved as if to behead them when they went down after five lightning-fast kicks to their kidneys and Hare called 3985 back.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They kept on going.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Kick, kick, duck, punch - </span>
  <em>
    <span>swipe </span>
  </em>
  <span>- call!</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The trainees were not run-of-the-mill Chuunin, they were promising recruits. Skilled and flagged for Black Ops… but it wasn't enough.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn't </span>
  <em>
    <span>nearly enough.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>After trainees six and seven were called when Shisui cast a genjutsu to make them fight each other and they nearly did lasting damage, the others started to twig that things weren't going to stop until Shisui had faced every single one of them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As he engaged in another taijutsu match - they weren't the </span>
  <em>
    <span>same</span>
  </em>
  <span> when it wasn't Gai, so overpoweringly strong, or Kakashi, who shifted between stolen forms like the deadliest collage - there was a flurry of whispers high on the wall.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And then- Hare called them all into the hall.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As the final seven trainees rushed over, Shisui allowed himself to grab #8’s approaching fist, tugging the taller man into a crushing headlock and forcing him into unconsciousness.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Oh, this was going to be </span>
  <em>
    <span>fun</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Unused until now, Shisui’s Shunshin seemed to shiver through his limbs. To those watching, his form seemed to blur around the edges, energy so condensed he appeared more mirage than reality and more than one trainee immediately attempted to dispel what they perceived to be a genjutsu.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He took a single step forwards and the world slowed like the thickest glue, soup in his lungs and tugging on his curls, eyes wide and bright behind his Monkey mask, and-</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His image stuttered, after-images flashing across the arena and between the seven Rookies before they could even draw breath.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It happened faster than their brains could comprehend.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>To Shisui, he had all the time in the world.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>One second, he had been standing before them as they rushed en masse.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And then he </span>
  <em>
    <span>wasn't</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They fell like marionettes with their strings cut, eyes rolling back, unconscious from the efficient blows registered to their base of their necks.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The last thing they saw before waking in the medic wing was the blur of Monkey, the Shunshin, before he completely disappeared.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His moniker, and his Flee-On-Sight, were more than well-earned.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As they recovered hours later, the resounding conclusion of their brief spar with Captain Monkey was that he, for all his cheerful demeanour and helpful advice, was the most terrifying shinobi they had met so far. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(They had no idea how right they were)</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>A/N- </p>
<p>Machi: ‘ten thousand’, she/her….. Think of her legs like that cool assassin from Kingsmen, yeah?</p>
<p>Me @ me, planning this chapter: so....shisui wears "makeup" and kicks ass?<br/>Me: uh yeah where else am I supposed to validate my Fav?</p>
<p>Also i know everyone always writes anbu training like hardcore hazing and thats fine but i didnt reeeeally want to. You’ll notice that my fic has some down right brutal practices but i also figure that if youre committing heinous crimes in black ops, the collective supoort aroudn you is all the stronger for it so you dotn have anbu killing themsleves constantly. I figure people train anonymously with anbu pretty freely - with clearance and a recommendation from their commanding officer and the hokage ofc - and anbu trainers are helpful but very strict about what is acceptable. Theres no reason to terrorise you potential teammates but if they obviously cannot hack it, mentally or skills-wise, then they get cut quickly. Hare is soooooo skilled at telling if people can handle it. The average trainee period is from three months to six months before you pass and are assigned an official rookie mask. Kakashi passed in two weeks and shisui and itachi both entered and passed around the same time, at three and a half weeks. </p>
<p>So yes, as youve guessed by now, we do things my way lmao</p>
<p>Everyone, a million years ago when I asked about pairings near the start of part One: oh so there's romance brewing before this part ends<br/>Me, not knowing how to tell you I needed to plan ahead: ◐.̃◐</p>
<p>Shisui: everyone thinks im wearing makeup haha<br/>Everyone: oh god he’s somehow even hotter</p>
<p>Me, writing the first scene: and itachi was stupidly ambidextrous because OF COURSE he is….stupid natural talent…. grrrr</p>
<p>Also i just….really wanted to write shisui being this crazy impressive figure in ANBU waaaaaa~</p>
<p>Also, Inoichi forbade shisui from acknowledging the Day he died before, actually making him take a day with his squad and then babysitting Ino and Sakura so he couldn't get all nihilistic about it. Also I say four months because March &gt; November is when he died so he's considering every day after that original date a win.</p>
<p>Also peach spirit is peach schnapps haha</p>
<p>Please subscribe and comment! And ahsjakkdkksdn feel free to call me Torship, everyone calling me Authorship is very sweet but I feel old lmao</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Agitated</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>"Air, I should explain, becomes wind when it is agitated."<br/>- Lucretius</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The first time Shisui stepped outside of the village boundaries, finally allowed back onto the active duty rota, he nearly laughed himself sick from the breathless feeling of utter </span>
  <em>
    <span>freedom</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A small courier mission to Hill Country was nothing more than a doddle. Hardly worth the resulting excitement but Shisui had worked so hard just to </span>
  <em>
    <span>get here</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He could run and he could </span>
  <em>
    <span>breathe</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The landscape blurred beneath his racing feet, the scenery merging and transforming gradually with every passing moment. He flew through the countryside, bypassing roads and towns, and within a few hours the sea was flirting along the horizon, an iridescent ribbon of silver water that shone beneath the bright sunlight.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Hilltop Archives, that boasted of the finest public library in the entire Elemental Nations, were situated on a grassy crest that overlooked the merchant bay on the coastline below. Built in sun-bleached pale stone, all flat-roofed with skylights set into them, the Archives were fairly teeming with apprentices and scholars.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was, Monkey noted from the extensive summer homes built into the hillsides and the immaculately clean paved roads, an incredibly expensive place to live. In the winter months, when the good weather eased and the sea became pale grey, the rich flocked back to their permanent residences across the continent. Hill Country had strict policies on political neutrality, the smaller hamlets utterly self-sufficient and the libraries funded by alumni from all corners of the map. There was a shinobi village, that of Yumegakure, that was… a vassal of Konoha, to speak... gently... of the situation. Despite the country's general wealth, the shinobi village was obscure and small. And under Konoha's protection.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The landscape was characterised by orchard grottos, planted in terraces, and perfect winding roads built especially for the constant flow of caravans travelling to and from the ports. Konoha imported a great deal of luxuries from Hill, everything from silk to spices.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Monkey kept to the trees as he dashed through, the sea breeze tugging his hair and buffeting the bare skin of his upper arms, exposed by his ANBU uniform. The artefacts, donated by the Fire Country Shrine as a token of goodwill for the upcoming summer exhibits, were sealed in a scroll bound carefully between his shoulder blades. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Evening was rolling in, peach skies tainting the sea as pink as raspberry lemonade, when Monkey slunk from between the buttresses and into the open window of the Curator’s office. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The room was more a collectors’ suite than the private quarters it had once been. Only the luxurious hammock remained, a cloud of silk and goose feather down strung from the spire's high beams by sturdy leather cords. The rest of the space was dominated by shelves of texts and glass cases of no doubt priceless items. The room was filled with amber sunlight, streaming in from the large arched windows and the skylights built into the roof.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The man in question was old, curly hair carefully held back from his forehead with a painted silk scarf, exposing a high brow and intelligent eyes made larger by the round spectacles perched on his flat nose. His skin was naturally dark but made even richer from constant exposure to the seaside sun. His green robes were unceremoniously shoved over his elbows as he hunched over his extremely organised desk, tiny brush in hand carefully cleaning an ornate snuffbox. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Masaaki-sama," Monkey dropped from the roof and straight into a kneel. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Curator jerked violently, dropping the brush with a clatter and fumbling to catch the snuffbox before it could tumble straight over the edge of his desk. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Shinobi-san!" He heaved a furious gasp, mouth flapping like a beached salmon, and dared to glare over the rim of his glasses at the hunched operative. "This –! Five </span>
  <em>
    <span>generations</span>
  </em>
  <span>!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Grasping the gist of the man’s complaint, Monkey lifted a hand and flicked the latch on the scroll harness before tugging the tube into his hands. "Forgive me, Masaaki-sama. I bear the promised gift from the Monks of the Red Temple. I was sent to ensure its safe arrival." </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The artefact, whatever it was, had apparently been worth the steep delivery price to the Monks. Monkey wondered where they stashed the cash.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Masaaki huffed and puffed in aggravation but allowed Monkey to approach his bench with a put-upon sigh, as though Monkey was burdening him with a time-wasting venture. Monkey, who had met the man a handful of times over the years, found him changed only in hair colour. The typical scholar.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Despite his impatience with anything shinobi-related, the man unsealed the artefact - a golden icon, from a quick glance - with a well-practised gesture. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He examined it carefully, angling a looking-glass built on an adjustable frame into the desktop, for a full twenty minutes before he finally conceded that it was genuine and Monkey hadn't somehow damaged it on the journey down. Begrudgingly satisfied, Masaaki finally wrote out his responding note for Monkey to take back with him and excused the ANBU agent.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Running back through the night was a very different experience, cooler and dark enough to warrant the usage of his Sharingan, but refreshing in its own right.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Somehow, it felt different to all the sulking about the village he'd done. Maybe it was the absence of Danzo's ghost. There was nothing here to… remind him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The wind was almost gentle as it caressed his skin, satisfying in a way that had Monkey almost tempted to shed his mask just to feel it against his face. Needless to say, uninterested in breaking policy on his first mission back out, the urge was repressed, and he continued on. The thought alone brought a smile, however.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The mission was completed in, predictably, record time and perfect to the last degree (even if Masaaki had actually bothered to complain about common courtesy including not spooking specialists when they’re examining priceless pieces in his extremely short note). Boar, who knew enough of the man herself, did not hold it against him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Inoichi put him through a brief post-mission evaluation to ensure his limits were where they needed to be and his file was squared away.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, grinning triumphantly but trying not to appear too obnoxious about it, was officially reinstated full-time. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(He celebrated by absolutely gorging himself at an Akimichi buffet restaurant, the proprietor having recognised him immediately and insisted that the bill was on the house. Tenzo was a little concerned about taking advantage of their generosity but Genma and Shisui ended up ordering far too much and it all went to hell from there.)</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>………………………………………………………...</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>June arrived with the silent bank of heat that was both anticipated and dreaded by the Konohan population.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The fields were burned to a brittle yellow in a matter of days, crops wilting and the majority of Genin teams enlisted to keep the various horticultural plantations and vegetable patches alive. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The skies were utterly cloudless, not so much as a wisp surviving to give the briefest shadow of relief, and the air was as oppressive and dry in the throat as any day nearer the Wind border. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Naka, which had swollen slightly in the springtime downpours, retracted back into its bed, glimmering sapphire and emerald as it churned beneath the burning sun.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, perspiration constantly beading down the dip of his spine, actually contemplated forgoing a shirt beneath his vest… before hurriedly discarding the idea. Far too… </span>
  <em>
    <span>Anko</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Summer brought with it more than just higher temperatures.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>On the ninth, Itachi turned sweet sixteen. The day was characterised by the (sickening) dango-binge Shisui treated his cousin to for lunch which thoroughly ruined the lovely dinner Mikoto had prepared for the evening. His present to the younger boy was a painted silk scarf, something he could weave into his usual ponytail. Pale blue with curling white clouds and playful red birds in flight, he’d picked it up from one of the travelling merchant’s stalls. (Sasuke had helped Mikoto engrave a new set of shuriken.) </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The academy broke for a fortnight holiday and a number of those students were immediately enlisted by their relatives to run errands and help the family businesses. Ino, for her part, spent every morning helping Sora restock and care for the flowers at the shop and then again in the evening, after the sun had relented behind the horizon, to join with the Clansmen watering the grounds and greenhouses. Her friend Sakura, so she told Shisui when he popped his head in for dinner one evening, was helping her parents organise their wares which was </span>
  <em>
    <span>much</span>
  </em>
  <span> more boring than Ino’s job.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, biting his lip on the comment that Sasuke was doing nothing but chores and training during the break, solemnly agreed that handling leather was stinky work. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Base Children, who had all chosen new names (if they wanted) and new birthdays (if they didn't remember), were set to test into the academy next year. For now, they were enlisted to help the Yamanaka Clan just as any Clan member. They were ‘unofficial’ cousins, to hear the way Ino talked about them. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The blonde Heir had met the children gradually over the past few months, something unavoidable when they were living so near. Ino, having been sat down by her parents and very seriously informed that the Clan was taking in some abused children around her age, had been extremely mature regarding potential disruptions to their recovery. She was well used to seeing rehabilitated shinobi spending time in the gardens and she wasn’t an idiot; she treated them politely but kept things brief, not wanting to overwhelm or distress them if she accidentally hit a nerve. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But she knew their faces and they knew hers.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In the months of Shisui’s own journey to recovery, other villagers had taken their own steps in the right direction. Yua, taking time to visit Kanoe every week, had finally been able to escort the young teen from the Department and she’d made him welcome in her own Compound House. Her relationship with her brother, Fu, was… rockier. They had been incredibly close when they were younger, fraternal twins often were, and his ‘death’ had hardened something inside her. To bring them back together, when they’d grown in each other's absence, was a messy affair. Shisui, who had always longed for siblings, hoped they could find peace soon.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Raidou’s apprenticeship was progressing well, allowing him back on the occasional mission rota with Genma - smaller groups generally meant shorter missions - and reduced his study hours to just two days a week. Heavily encouraged by Hiromi, he’d taken to carefully drawing freehand circles on every available scrap of paper, trying to improve his dexterity and perception so that he could effortlessly replicate perfect angles and shapes without error. Shisui, noting the destroyed napkins that he’d absentmindedly doodled on in the ANBU kitchens, nearly snorted his coffee when Genma had called Raidou "the most boring kind of delinquent".</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>One thing that hadn't really changed, reassuringly, was their Squad. Even as Kakashi tallied up solo missions left, right and center, as Genma and Raidou took pair-missions, they still orbited each other. Shisui couldn't go two days without speaking to one of them, especially when he was roped into watering the Yamanaka plants and found himself, clutching a watering can, staring at a bemused Tenzo in the exact same position in another bed. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He barely ate alone anymore. If he didn't find himself somehow wrangled into a meal at Inoichi’s house, he was forced to sit through a meal where Fugaku grilled his eldest on Station policy and Mikoto quietly talked him through the latest developments. And, on the occasion that he wasn't eating in someone else’s house or going out for food with his friends, he couldn't eat a meal in his own home </span>
  <em>
    <span>either</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Itachi would rap on the front door, desperate for a reprieve from his own house and an excuse to miss a dinner where his father-turned-boss bore down on him relentlessly. Sometimes it was Tenzo, if he was in the dorms, and they hunched over Shisui’s pathetic attempts at cooking in the quietness of his little kitchenette at stupid o’clock and still damp from their respective showers. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He felt… better.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Settled.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(it was a novel experience.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He still trained with Gai, when they were both available. Hare had called him back for another training session with the ANBU potentials for stealth tips and all fifteen had been oddly reverent around him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Despite the continuing mission-drought, Shisui had been able to leave the village on three separate occasions since May (laughable, in a sense, considering how sure he'd been that he was ready to return in </span>
  <em>
    <span>February</span>
  </em>
  <span>) and they'd all gone relatively smoothly. Yes, they'd been largely contained within Fire Country's borders or their immediate neighbours, but they were still </span>
  <em>
    <span>missions. </span>
  </em>
  <span>He was doing his actual </span>
  <em>
    <span>job.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Considering the fact that there weren't many missions to take, Shisui's weekly schedules had changed little.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>So, when he found himself once more taking tea with the Sandaime, he didn't exactly read into the situation. Well, not any more than usual.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Cutting his training with Gai short - who had immediately professed that he would make up the extra hours with pure zeal tomorrow, which was something to, er, </span>
  <em>
    <span>anticipate </span>
  </em>
  <span>- he'd arrived sharpish, as usual, because there was no chance in the world that Shisui would ever keep the village leader </span>
  <em>
    <span>waiting</span>
  </em>
  <span> around for him to swan in. </span>
  <em>
    <span>No</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tadame was swathed in a loose linen shirt and matching calve-length skirt today, a small desk fan plugged in to blow cool air directly onto her face as she worked. Her hair, barely skimming her forehead, was damp. She smiled brightly at the sight of him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Good morning, Shisui-san!" She trilled with more energy than Shisui thought possible in this weather.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Uchiha attempted to muster enough enthusiasm to return the greeting, "Tadame-san." He flashed his dimples. "How are you today?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The receptionist rolled her eyes playfully, theatrically fanning a hand that drew a few chuckles from the Jounin. Captain Owl was guarding the door and fluttered their chakra in greeting, which Shisui reciprocated. Another thing that had become part of this routine. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Perhaps you'd prefer something cooler today?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, still slightly awkward with this little ritual, inclined his head. "That would be great," He admitted, "If it's not too much trouble."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tadame's smile twisted sideways, something wistful and yet amused casting across her pretty features, "Of course not, Shisui-san. You may go straight in."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>With a parting smile - he still hadn't managed to figure out why she always bought time before allowing him entrance to the office - Shisui rapped on the door with a knuckle, even though the Sandaime knew exactly who to expect on a Tuesday. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Today the Sandaime did not even pause in his writing when he bid Shisui enter, gnarled hands carefully transcribing every line of kanji. His hat was hooked to the back of his chair, the shock of his white hair blending with his usual crisp robes. Shisui noted the three large fans in place and the smooth river stones dotted about to keep paperwork from scattering in the circulation. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Ah, Shisui-kun," The Sandaime glanced up, even as Shisui dropped into his bow, with an affable smile that moulded the folds of his skin, "How refreshingly prompt as always."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui flushed uncomfortably red, neck and ears prickling hot, and internally cursed his fair skin tone. Everyone seemed to think Kakashi's bad habits would rub off on the rest of them. (In reality, they lied to him about the timings or they - </span>
  <em>
    <span>read: Genma</span>
  </em>
  <span> - forcefully escorted him.) </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I would not keep you waiting, Sandaime-sama."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Hokage gestured for the Uchiha to rise and take a seat, which he naturally obeyed. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"You are to be congratulated on a full recovery, I understand," The old man began, setting aside his work for a moment. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui folded his hands in his lap and inclined his head. "Thank you, Sandaime-sama."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"You've been doing well… in all areas, despite your absence from the field," He continued, reshuffling his papers with an interested hum. There was no judgement in his tone but Shisui's interest was spiked. Where was he going with this? Normally, the Sandaime would segue his greetings into questions of his Clansmen. This felt… more personally directed. "Have you given any thought to where your career is headed?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The words struck like a jolt of ice. Shisui had only just returned to active duty, how could the Sandaime expect - ?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"In what regard, Sandaime-sama?" Shisui demurred.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Well," The old man gestured with one hand around the office. "Will you follow in your sensei's specialisation?" It was an open secret that Inoichi planned to retire when Ino graduated. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui forced himself to crack a smile. It would make no sense for Shisui to be allowed back in the field only for the Sandaime to decommission him a handful of jobs later, "I don't think Ibiki would appreciate my muscling in on the position he's worked so hard towards."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Sandaime conceded the point, signing his name with a flourish and setting the message aside. "Of course, you hold him in high regard. I had forgotten you were teammates for a time."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui bit his lip on the correction that his connection to Ibiki played very little part in that decision. It would be a shitty thing to do to anyone. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Ibiki has shadowed Inoichi-sensei for several years; when the time is right, the position will be well-earned." His tone was final.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Well then, do you have any plans to carry on your Clan's legacy?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Brows furrowing into a little divot, Shisui shook his head decidedly. "I was given the option when I reached Jounin," He deflected, "But both myself and my Uncle decided that my skills were better suited for Konoha’s interests… internationally."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>In actual fact, Shisui had been determined to carve his own path and Fugaku was more than pleased to have his nephew out from underfoot and of use to extend his own reach into the village itself. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Ah," The Sandaime looked decidedly satisfied and Shisui felt a shiver of foreboding, "I must admit myself pleased. Boar has nothing but praise to say of your work."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui blinked and cocked his head. Evidently the Sandaime was willfully ignoring the expletives the Commander no doubt attached to his name. "Sensei’s mindwalk of Kanoe, and his own testimonies, have been immensely helpful in identifying the weaknesses in ANBU regulation and our actions. I have personally helped Hare screen the new trainees to ensure we know exactly who we are initiating."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Indeed. Perhaps you have ambitions for the position of ANBU Commander, should Boar retire," At this point, the Hokage seemed to be musing to the side instead of asking Shisui.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui’s mouth unwittingly curled upwards, "I wouldn't </span>
  <em>
    <span>dare</span>
  </em>
  <span>. But –” Sensing that the Hokage wouldn't stop until he had unearthed whatever answers he was seeking so shamelessly, the Jounin ploughed on, "I made a vow a few years ago and nothing has convinced me to discard it."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Sandaime looked genuinely intrigued, "And what vow was that?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui’s smile lost its humour, gaze sharpening with calculation, "I would not leave ANBU unless Kakashi-taichou does."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The room was silent, frozen of all movement besides the buzz of the fans and the faint rustle of paper every time the wind caught them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A wasp batted lightly against the windowpane before flying away.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Sandaime’s face was still, eyes gauging Shisui’s just as he was doing the same. The Sandaime could order him from his ANBU posts in an instant, the snap of his fingers, but he also seemed to seek the Jounin’s own council. Shisui's words weighed heavily between them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui stood by them.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Shisui wasn't </span>
  <em>
    <span>stupid</span>
  </em>
  <span>; he’d had four months grounded in the village after a near-death - </span>
  <em>
    <span>actual resurrection</span>
  </em>
  <span> - experience and intensive, regular therapy sessions. Kakashi had been dealt debilitating trauma after trauma that would have broken anyone else until they were psychopathic maniacs or restrained in a private hospital facility. But Kakashi was </span>
  <em>
    <span>out there</span>
  </em>
  <span>, still functioning in the basic sense, and the only therapist he didn't totally haze until he was forcefully reassigned was a </span>
  <em>
    <span>technically retired</span>
  </em>
  <span> Yamanaka </span>
  <em>
    <span>grandmother</span>
  </em>
  <span> who baked his pack dog biscuits every time Kakashi showed up for a session. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Until Kakashi released himself from the Hound mask, Shisui wasn't going anywhere. None of them were.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Tea?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The sudden suggestion jarred him from his introspection and, sighing internally, Shisui agreed. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tadame entered with her tray, a large jug replacing the usual green teapot and two tall glasses in place of the matching cups. The jar was filled with slices of lemon, ice cubes that bobbed with every motion and honey gold chilled tea. The Sandaime’s brows lifted infinitesimally.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Something to abate the heat, Hokage-sama," Tadame smiled knowingly. They exchanged a long glance as the brunette poured and set out their glasses. Feeling out of the loop, Shisui accepted his with an awkward smile. His fingers gripped the damp glass, condensation already beading. The Sandaime let out a low, rolling chuckle and Tadame's smile gained a certain smirkish quality.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, eyes lifted upwards as if asking for mercy, wondered when Tadame would stop making him unwittingly complicit in this little game she played with the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Hokage.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Considerate as ever, Tadame-chan! If we need you, I shall call."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>When the door clicked behind her, the Sandaime took a long draught of his iced tea, sitting back with a satisfied sigh and bracing the bottom of the glass on his chest, uncaring for the wet streak of condensation darkening his white robe. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I have a mission for you, Shisui-kun."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Attention thoroughly recaptured, Shisui straightened in his chair and turned his own, untouched, glass to the desktop. "Your will is mine, Sandaime-sama." His mind spun ahead, turning the old man's peculiar phrasing over. "What will this mission entail?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Dark eyes flickered over his face, shrewd but not hostile, and lingered over Hiromi's work, as everyone's did. He seemed to weigh Shisui - his skills or potential, the Jounin couldn't be sure - before speaking again.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"It will take a number of weeks," Despite his searching gaze, the old man's tone was light, as though musing the theoretical and not Shisui's assigned task, "You will be going alone - you, not Monkey - and the specifications, whilst deceptively simple, are of utmost importance."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>When the Sandaime made no motion to pass over a mission scroll, Shisui squinted a little. </span>
  <em>
    <span>For Shisui, not Monkey…</span>
  </em>
  <span> "Is this not… ANBU-regulated?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Sandaime set his glass down with a damp thump. "This mission is not standard," he agreed, "I’m putting my faith in you to succeed in this endeavour, Shisui-kun, and to be discrete."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Off the record.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>For a wild second, Shisui's heart threatened to break into a sprint because, so soon after he had re-joined the rota, it was undoubtedly unexpected for the Hokage to give him something like this. So abruptly too.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Danzo's suggestions had been sudden. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Was the Hokage trying to...dispose of him?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>No. Surely… not.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Sandaime, for all he had been dangerously passive throughout Danzo's machinations, had kept his word admirably. Mikoto had been able to make real changes to the village, not limited to the redistribution of funding and retirement policies for those who served twenty years (instead of the usual bracket of sixty plus, seeing as many shinobi were forced to retire early). Even just this month, Mikoto had finally opened up talks to have the Konoha Prison removed from the Uchiha Compound and Shisui had overheard her speaking </span>
  <em>
    <span>sternly </span>
  </em>
  <span>to her husband about non-Uchiha Officer applications. Change was happening and the Sandaime had not been disrupting that.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Shisui would know, he had been </span>
  <em>
    <span>checking.</span>
  </em>
  <span>)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>So, if the Sandaime wasn't trying to dispose of Shisui…</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>What </span>
  <em>
    <span>was </span>
  </em>
  <span>he trying to do?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Well, for starters, he was boldly petitioning to Shisui’s humanity and sense of loyalty to the village. The nigh-on </span>
  <em>
    <span>vulnerability </span>
  </em>
  <span>of his words drew on the hesitant camaraderie they’d established since Danzo’s death. Shisui, for his part, still felt very much like prey. But the Sandaime… he </span>
  <em>
    <span>seemed </span>
  </em>
  <span>to enjoy Shisui's input and company, even if his talents were better suited to cards than shogi. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But… what was actually going on to warrant a mission so… dire and vague? Intrigued despite himself, Shisui nodded slowly, hedging a total acceptance just yet even though, as a loyal Jounin, he would inevitably follow orders. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"What is the objective of this mission, Sandaime-sama?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I want you to find an important informant. They’ve... </span>
  <em>
    <span>neglected</span>
  </em>
  <span> to make contact in recent months and their information has been…" He waved a wizened hand, searching for the word before deciding. "Lacking. And now, they have disappeared completely. I want you," He nodded towards Shisui, "To find them and escort them back to Konoha if possible." He leaned forward, bracing his elbows on the armrests of his chair to gesture loosely in the space between his hands and the desk. "But, more than that, I want to know where they </span>
  <em>
    <span>stand</span>
  </em>
  <span>."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Ah</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he wanted to know if his informant had been killed or changed allegiances. Shisui could do that. However -</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He bit the inside of his cheek, rolling the idea over in his mind again. He felt like, with every scrap the Sandaime fed him, the puzzle was coming together in his hands… but, in all truth, what he </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> hearing sounded like a bunch of smoke and mirrors and nothing terribly conclusive. If the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Hokage</span>
  </em>
  <span> didn't know his informant’s location, Shisui was going to find himself trying to dig a needle from a haystack… the size of the continent.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And all of that...</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>...Solo</span>
  </em>
  <span>?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"When should I leave?" He murmured, trying to get a feel for the perimeters and failing.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"As soon as you can, Shisui-kun."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck</span>
  </em>
  <span>. How did he know he was going to say that?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I do appreciate this - " Shisui was struck but the unholy realisation that, if the Hokage was taking the opportunity to thank him in advance, he would surely be thoroughly cursing the Sandaime before he was thorough. "- And I will ensure that those </span>
  <em>
    <span>uninformed</span>
  </em>
  <span> will believe you on an extended ANBU stint. You will be compensated for your time; S Rank should do."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Who </span>
  <em>
    <span>the fuck-</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Do you have their last known location?" He croaked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Sandaime, in lieu of a mission debrief, slid an envelope across the desk. "This should give you enough to get started."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui sincerely doubted that. If an S Rank informant had gone to ground, a library shelf might not be enough, let alone a measly scrap of note.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He took his leave, envelope carefully tucked against his chest, and started off past Tadame's desk - with barely the presence of mind to return her smile, let alone acknowledge Captain Owl - and made a dash for the nearest unoccupied tree.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Absconded in the canopy and cocooned in cool, emerald shade, Shisui broke the seal on the paper and slid out three tiny scroll. They were no bigger than his pinky finger and rolled innocently in the centre of his palm, clicking against each other.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Cracking apart the only one with it's seal previously opened, Shisui scanned the contents with narrowed eyes. The handwriting was unmistakably that of the Sandaime, some note that the messenger hawks were unable to deliver.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And, there, addressed as the bottom… to Jiraiya of the Sannin.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Well. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Shit</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>…………………………………………………………….</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Another solo?" Inoichi repeated in surprise, watching Shisui carefully take stock of his medical supplies spread out over his living room floor. The Uchiha had popped in to inform the blonde after spending the rest of the day hunting down his Squadmates and doing some last minute shopping. "And here</span>
  <em>
    <span> I</span>
  </em>
  <span> thought ANBU was just as short on missions as the rest of us…"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui started counting out his soldier tablets with single-minded focus. "I was explicitly requested."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Inoichi blinked, leaning against the arm of Shisui's neglected sofa. "Who by? Or," His tone turned wry, "Is that confidential?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>The Sandaime</span>
  </em>
  <span>. "Black Ops for a reason, sensei," He smirked a little, "– Nine, ten. Okay. Can you pass me my blades?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Inoichi obligingly picked the three spare tantō and his Kamu-tantō from their stands, something thoughtful crumpling his relatively smooth forehead. The Konohan council had been making noises recently about executing those ROOT agents who refused the Department’s psychological help and still proclaimed themselves loyal to their master, Danzo. Despite the brutality of shinobi life, even Ibiki had seemed a little disquieted by the prospect of six back-to-back executions. These operatives hadn't been </span>
  <em>
    <span>willing</span>
  </em>
  <span> when they’d joined Danzo; was judging them on the same level as a traitor or an enemy right?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ethical debates aside, Inoichi had been busy all day and it was evident that the last thing he’d expected was for Shisui to announce that he was leaving for an unspecified amount of time on a solo mission. He'd definitely sobered when Shisui had revealed the Rank.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Is there a reason you're preparing here -" He gestured around Shisui's parent's house "- and not at the </span>
  <em>
    <span>ANBU </span>
  </em>
  <span>dorms?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui found himself chuckling as he finished polishing the first blade. He certainly had dropped too many hints. After all - how could he be personally requested when ANBU was anonymised? He carefully lifted his gaze from his blades and met Inoichi’s eyes head-on. "Privacy."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Understanding flashed through aqua, deepened to ocean green in the summer evening. The house was more defensible for a secret like this, "Tell me." </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I'm to track down a certain </span>
  <em>
    <span>croaking</span>
  </em>
  <span> informant," Shisui immediately divulged, checking the handles of his tantō to ensure the leather hadn't started to wear. Nothing worse than a blade that malfunctioned mid-battle. Kami knew what he’d face out there, or what straits Jiriaya had gotten himself into; to say the Sage was ‘notorious’ was an understatement. "But I have no initial status report to begin. His last sighting was three months ago."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Inoichi’s expression grew severe. "Do you know why?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Why now?</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Sannin had made no concealment of their leaving the village. Orochimaru had been hunted for his crimes but Tsunade, officially, was on a 'personal sabbatical' and Jiraiya's information-gathering spree was going on over a decade. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"He is wanted. That’s all I was told." Shisui’s voice had quietened.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>If the Sandaime wanted one of his students back… </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe, as Danzo was gone, he was looking to retire. Hadn't he himself admitted he was aged and weary, had long expected his reign to end when Minato was alive? </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>He wants me to find his replacement</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He didn't dare voice the concept aloud. If he was right…</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>For Shisui to be the one tasked with bringing the Godaime forward…</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>That was a </span>
  <em>
    <span>statement.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui's eyes flicked upwards and captured Inoichi's, "I'll deal with it. I'll find him."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(In the golden light peeking through the windows, his sealing tattoos seemed to glow, giving him an unearthly quality. His eyes appeared darker, liquid, and more defined in his face. Shisui had always been attractive, with the classic Uchiha features and his own friendly charm, but, after Hiromi had traced fuinjutsu into his eyelids, he looked… </span>
  <em>
    <span>different</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Vibrant, unusual… less boyish and more like the man he was becoming. Inoichi himself had noted how people’s gazes were drawn and lingered on his student’s face, his tall figure, the cut of his jawline. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And, if Shisui wasn't being sent out as Monkey…)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"You’ll have to wear a genjutsu," The blonde squinted thoughtfully. He’d shed his red jacket after coming through the door, leaving him in just his green shirt, forearms exposed as he folded them, hip cocked. "Those seals are distinctive and memorable," he elaborated, seeming to realise that comment had come from nowhere, "Not to mention that your actual face is in every bingo book from here to Bean-Jam."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui conceded the point with a shrug, standing to slot his weapons into place. He was dressed professionally but with concessions for the heat; an Uchiha-style shirt beneath his purple vest with ANBU pants and his hitai-ate around his forehead. The Kamu-tantō had pride of place in the holster slung across his shoulders, bandages wrapped economically around his thigh - and binding both hands and feet the way Gai had taught him - and his mother’s earrings, as always, hanging from each lobe. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I’ll be sending Arakan back with regular updates." He bent to pull his sandals on. "I’ll make sure Itachi keeps you informed."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Be careful." The blonde finally conceded, unfolding his arms to tug Shisui into a bracing hug. "I know you're formidable, Shisui, and you’re damn </span>
  <em>
    <span>resourceful</span>
  </em>
  <span> but you’re fresh back from your medical leave and if you think you’re going to regress…" He heaved a sigh. "Take an immediate step back and re-evaluate the situation. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Don't</span>
  </em>
  <span> push your boundaries for your pride, use your </span>
  <em>
    <span>head</span>
  </em>
  <span>. And don't hesitate to Summon any of your bonded allies, even if you may think it’s overkill."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui nodded easily. After all, as soon as he’d fully grasped the enormity of the task the Sandaime was entrusting to him, he'd immediately petitioned for aid from the Crows. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>The peace of his lunchtime break was interrupted by the sharp snap of silken wings coming in to land on the branch a little above his head.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Shisui, half-asleep in the cradle of the tree’s canopy, didn’t so much as twitch. Sweat, from the heat and the earlier exercise - surely surviving a packed marketplace at high noon in this heat counted - tickled the back of his neck as it slowly trailed its way beneath his thin shirt. His feet were bare, swinging limply in the faint breeze.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Above his head, the clacker of Crow interrupted the quiet symphony of the cicadas.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"Summoner, We, the Crows, have been in Conclave and discussed the issue you petitioned to us."</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>How majestic</span>
  <em>
    <span>, he smiled. He’d only posed the question two hours ago. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"What’s the verdict, Akira?" Shisui squinted open one eye and flicked the crow a glance out of the corner of his vision. His ebony feathers glimmered in the dappled golden light filtered through the leaves surrounding them. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>The Summon’s chest puffed up with all due importance and he crooked his head to peer at the Jounin with one, shiny eye. "Myself and Kana will accompany you on your Journey. The others shall follow our suit."</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Good.</span>
  <em>
    <span> He’d hate to have to go alone, especially in the current climate. Shisui’s teeth flashed, equal parts pleased and rueful. "I’m honoured."</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui laughed, locking his hands behind Inoichi’s waist and playfully rocking the older man back and forth a few times. "I will, I will, I swear. Even the Great Hime, if I have to - she’ll threaten to eat me but she’d be free to if she can save my ass!" Then, his expression softened, pulling back to meet Inoichi’s eyes seriously. "I’ll stay for dinner, so you don’t have to be the one to tell Ino."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The more serious mood broken, Inoichi rolled his eyes skyward, lips twitching despite his best efforts. "How </span>
  <em>
    <span>thoughtful</span>
  </em>
  <span>."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>……………………………………………………………</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As dusk settled over the valley, Shisui thanked Sora for the meal and gave Ino a final cuddle before taking his leave.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He'd met with Kakashi earlier, just a small exchange where more information was transferred through body language and silence than the handful of words spoken aloud. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Tenzo had been with Genma and Raidou, so visiting his dorm had killed three birds with one stone. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>None of them officially knew what task Shisui had been assigned. They'd sworn to keep an eye out anyway.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Itachi met him by the wall, a small silhouette in the darkening woods, and promised to faithfully translate every one of Arakan’s messages. He passed over a pouch of money, refusing to take it back since Mikoto - the benefactor - would not be best pleased. Shisui conceded with poor grace, admitting to himself that the difficult mission would only be worsened if he was forced to steal to survive. Shinobi or not, petty crime didn't sit right with him. (Unlike with some, read: Kakashi and Genma.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>With a final smile, Shisui called Akira into this realm. Jiraiya’s last known location, as outdated as the information was, was the logical place to start the hunt. Akira could navigate from above whilst keeping up with Shisui's speed. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>With a final goodbye, both bird and boy disappeared into the wilderness.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>A/N- </p>
<p>Masaaki: ‘correct brightness’, he/him</p>
<p>EDIT (27/01) : i know it's been more than a week since the last update but I trigger-finger updated too quickly the last few chapters lmao I'm trying to migrate us back to a Friday schedule so the next update will actually BE next Friday </p>
<p>For anyone wondering about Naruto, he doesnt see shisui around because, like most Jounin, shisui rarely walks on the roads and certainly never normally in Naruto's shitty neighbourhood. And shisui, besides the sandaime, is the only person to ever personally wish him a happy birthday, of COURSE he remembers him! Teuchi called shisui ‘Uchiha-san’ so he's made the obvious leap that ‘Hey every single officer is an uchiha so I'll see if my guy is one of them’....unfortunately its nowhere near that simple… poor naru-baby ︶︿︶</p>
<p>Shisui's mission outfit: long-sleeved mesh undershirt, black turtleneck top, purple vest, bandages from fingers to elbows. Black pants with reinforced knees, bandages around his feet to below the knee and black sandals. Two pouches at his waist and sealing scrolls held against his chest with the jacket secret pockets. Two normal tantō strapped, under his trousers, to each thigh, accessible by his pockets. Kamu-tantō in his holster across his back. Dark travelling scarf/cloak covers his weapons etc.</p>
<p>Nothing to make him look uchiha, nothing to make him look Konohan</p>
<p>Also I always imagine Tadame's hair like Audrey Hepburn's baby fringe haha also obsessed with my tiny descriptions of her fashion ngl WE LIVE OUR BEST AESTHETIC LIFE THROUGH YOU SWEETIE</p>
<p>Me: *squints at my downloaded-off-google-images narutopedia world map* what the- *squints harder at the smudge between Stone Country and Forest Country* - BEAN JAM IS A WHOLE ASS COUNTRY?????<br/>Me: god i dont even know if i hate it or i desperately want to live there…. Surely nothing bad EVER happens in fucking Bean Jam...</p>
<p>Me: so shisui stayed in the village and had loads of fluffy found family moments!<br/>Shisui: that sucks but thats also adorable, thanks<br/>Me: and then he got therapy!<br/>Shisui: okay, progress...<br/>Me: and then he got to leave the village on missions again!<br/>Shisui: YES! SCORE! IT’S A WIN<br/>Me: and then the arc’s adventure started for plot reasons!<br/>Shisui: YE-wait what????? Arc???? WHAT-???</p>
<p>Shisui, oblivious: :)<br/>Random villagers: *he is so fucking beautfil fml*<br/>Inoichi, internally screaming: (｡ì _ í｡) *furiously taking names in his Black Book* I Will File Restraining Orders On All Of You</p>
<p>OMG black book...makes me think of the burn book… INOICHI AS REGINA GEORGE HAHAHAHA CHOUZA HAS WEATHER PECS-</p>
<p>Kakashi: *is so rude and impossible that every single Shrink quits*<br/>Granny: I made your lovely doggies some biscuits~<br/>Kakashi, in an aside to the camera like in The Office: what was I gonna do? Say NO to freebies?</p>
<p>Shisui and Inoichi when shisui goes on a mission for the first time since Danzo: that vine with the little kid screaming at their mom that they love them and the mom replies every single time lololol</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Stirred</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>"The wind takes us away and forward,<br/>changing our direction,<br/>closing our eyes against the dust it stirs up from the ground.<br/>Where it came from cannot be found." <br/>- Susan Brougher</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Lightning Country was </span>
  <em>
    <span>exhausting</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn't just the bare, naked rocks and the lack of forestry making Shisui’s neck prickle with uncertainty. He felt exposed, a lizard basking on a rock in full view of the snakes and birds of prey. There was no shelter here except for what boulders he could huddle between or the unpredictable banks of cloud that rolled in. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn't just the landscape, uphill all the way except for when those inclines cut into sheer drops. ‘Jagged’ was the word to describe the environment, and it felt just as welcoming as implied. A labyrinth of mountains and caverns, the stone identical; it was intimidatingly easy to get lost but, then again, didn't others say the same about Fire’s forests? Still, the constant climbing, the tension of keeping balance and skirting through by the tips of his fingers… gravel everywhere and the air dry and thin… </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Akira, who had remained in this realm ever since Shisui had Summoned him before leaving Konoha, had fluttered above him unhelpfully and fussed something awful about Shisui’s useless lack of wings and the dust he was kicking up. Sometimes, the chattering felt nearly </span>
  <em>
    <span>companionable</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Most of the time, it was just plain irritating.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The mountain wolves howled so clearly during the night, echoing all around so their location was impossible to pinpoint, that Akira was blessedly silent. Even he, a Summon, did not want to draw the packs' attention.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But the howling -</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Kakashi had come to see him before he’d left, something quiet and disturbingly young lingering in his demeanour. Ever since he’d learned about the staged context of Sakumo’s suicide, he’d been… still. As if he was nursing another unaddressed injury, licking his wounds in privacy and feigning ignorance if questioned. The Squad had been… careful but hadn’t tried to push. Kakashi would have fled, otherwise, and they knew that lesson all too well.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Pleased to see his Captain, Shisui still hadn't dared to reach out and touch him, uncertain if Kakashi would actually go feral and rip the offending limb off, but he did duck his head and smile.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He’d mentioned that Jiraiya’s publisher was located in Sancho, south of Kumo, and Shisui hadn't even remembered to be mad that he’d worked out his mission without permission. He’d just thanked him, casually hinting that Gai might want to train with his Rival more regularly with the Uchiha leaving the village, and graciously pretended that Kakashi’s aggravation was convincing. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He didn't ask. Kakashi didn't acknowledge it anyway.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Kakashi’s information had proven useful in the end, seeing as the Sandaime’s last letter to Jiraiya had been sent to the small village tucked into the mountains of Lightning Country, thankfully nowhere dangerously close to Kumogakure. Shisui, from the… amount of assassination missions that were targeted towards Kumo citizens, knew the countryside well. Or, rather, as well as he could, as an outsider.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Between Kawago and Sancho, those two towns, he had a relatively small area to start his hunt. (Considering the fact he’d faced the prospect of searching the entire continent and then some… yes, this was an improvement.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Seeing as Shisui wasn't dressed in his ANBU uniform, he had no real reason to skulk about like a suspicious monkey (literally), but the habit to hide was hard to shake. He wasn't currently wearing his hitai-ate - the headband was actually tied to his hip under the fall of his purple vest so he could identify himself if necessary but wouldn't flash his hand to everyone he passed - so there was nothing stopping him from keeping to the roads.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But, </span>
  <em>
    <span>well</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was one thing to feel twitchy when he was leaping and crawling up a mountainside. It was another thing entirely to walk in the middle of the damned road. There wasn't even any foliage overhead to cast shadows on the dusty, pale paths. He might have been half a day’s sprint to Kumo but it just felt </span>
  <em>
    <span>too much.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As a compromise, he loitered around the road’s vague vicinity, keeping a sharp eye on the occasional chakra signatures that entered his range. Monitoring those flickers was distracting, sore fingers grappling with merciless stone when his concentration dipped once more. He’d never used to use his sensing like this, so fiercely and consistently; until Danzo, it had been a languid little push. A little something extra. Now, as he strained for what felt like miles and miles - it wasn't, he was nowhere near that good - he found himself approaching a small hamlet, tucked between the dramatically curved walls of natural rockface.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The buildings were carved directly into the surrounding boulders, nothing to differentiate between them but the little holes of windows and rug-covered doorways and red-iron open walkways built into the sides and between each cluster, a dozen small bridges. The smoke from chimneys drifted upwards, merging with the low-hanging clouds that concealed the heights of the peaks. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Kawago.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, shoes filled with gravel and hands as dirty as a builder’s, skittered down a slope and caught himself on the next outcrop before the momentum could pitch him to a painful death. He’d pulled a scarf over his distinctive hair soon after entering the region, aware that the people native to Lightning were blonde more often than not. The material was carefully wrapped across his forehead, covering his equally incriminating brows, and then twisted and looped securely around his neck so that the high winds couldn't tug it free. He looked foreign, yes, but less obnoxiously so. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A genjutsu would have solved the problem but Shisui preferred to keep his energy stores as full as possible, conscious that things could go to shit </span>
  <em>
    <span>very </span>
  </em>
  <span>quickly.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There were people freely milling about, minding their own business. Thankfully, the regional clothes were not so different to Shisui’s own that he’d draw every eye as soon as he stepped out. Small, secluded settlements like this one… gossiped. It was a pain as much as it was something Shisui would be heavily relying on.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Akira fluttered down to land on Shisui’s shoulder, carefully keeping his talons from becoming entangled in the edge of his scarf (a lesson learned the hard - painful - way) and clicked his beak close to the Uchiha’s ear. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Is this where the miscreant has concealed himself, Summoner</span>
  </em>
  <span>?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui huffed a breath through his nose, slowly picking his way down the slope. "He has work here," he simplified. Akira wouldn't appreciate the exact nature of Jiraiya’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>work</span>
  </em>
  <span>, pornography being on no interest to him but the Crow understanding enough to be miffed by the crassness of it. He didn't think meeting the Sannin would improve Akira’s first impression. "It’s a start."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Akira shuffled his wings impatiently, "</span>
  <em>
    <span>You should have Summoned Kana instead of scrambling like an urchin through the dirt</span>
  </em>
  <span>," He grumbled. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>You are not fit to be seen, Summoner."</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His clothes were grey from the wind and dry earth, Shisui could readily admit. He had his reasons for going on foot however, the least of which wasn't that he didn't dare disturb Kana unless he felt it was absolutely necessary. ‘Subtlety’ didn't exist to her, after all.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I’m supposed to be an ordinary traveller," Shisui countered as they finally reached flat ground. It felt almost odd beneath his feet after being pressed to a mountainside for so long. "It would be strange if I was pristine. Now, please keep close but out of sight - I’ll call if I need you, and visa versa."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Crow snapped his beak, the equivalent of Shisui clicking his tongue and rolling his eyes, but left with a brushing flap of his wings an instant later. Shisui, resisting the urge to watch his companion circling overhead, straightened himself a little and unsealed a basic travelling bag from his hip, hitching it over one arm and walking casually up the nearest ramp as if he was supposed to be there. It was odd for someone to not have any baggage, after all.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn't hard to find the publishing office that Jiraiya used, the businesses all well signed so that they would be readable through the fog, and Shisui let himself straight inside.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Across the street, Akira innocently landed near a cluster of domesticated falcons and began casually preening his feathers. The local birds didn't bother him, even the buzzard who was almost the same size as the Summon. Still, Akira was larger than was strictly natural; he blended in a little better than he might have done elsewhere, surrounded with bloody wood pigeons or seagulls. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There was no bell on the door to chime overhead when Shisui stepped inside the publishing house, but there was a short-haired dog that barked sharply at the sight of him. It was smallish, with a curly tail resting on its spine, and a short red leash keeping it tethered to the front desk. Behind that, the walls were covered in piles of books and scrolls, with an open door in the corner. Through the opening, Shisui could just about make out the large cage-like machines, hear the thrum of the mechanisms, as the printing press worked. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At the dog’s baying, a tanned older man shuffled in from said workroom, reading spectacles perched on his nose like a jeweller’s magnifier. His robes were cream, like the parchment surrounding them, and completely swathed his figure, one of the inner layers even pulled up to cover the curve of his skull. Offsetting that, the dark navy of his apron bunched the fabric beneath his arms, exposing a small figure. His eyes, strikingly green in his lined face, squinted at Shisui.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Uchiha was glad for the scarf and the smear of blue makeup that covered his sealing tattoos.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Welcome, stranger," The man bowed slowly, a gesture which Shisui carefully returned. "How may I be of service today?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui swallowed silently before replying, trying to smooth the slight catch of his Konohan accent towards something more Fire-neutral, and made sure to enunciate every vowel. "I’m here about one of your clients, in actual fact; Jiraiya of the Icha Icha series." Before the man could bluster an excuse about confidentiality, the Uchiha pulled an orange book from his satchel. "I’m a freelance artist and I’m hoping to speak to him about producing a graphic novel of his next piece, if he’s interested. Do you have any way to contact him?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The book was, in actual fact, just a blank sheet of folded paper. Hidden under another genjutsu, his Sharingan carefully wove the illusion over the publisher. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Oh!" The man’s white brows winged upwards, obviously genuinely taken aback by the proposition, before a thoughtful frown tugged them downwards once more. "I’m afraid Jiraiya-san hasn't been here since the winter, when he delivered another draft."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui pasted blatant disappointment across his face, gnawing on his lower lip and fiddling with the fake novel in his hands. "I heard, on my way up the mountain, that he’d been in this region recently. I hoped I’d catch him…"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The publisher - still having neglected to introduce himself, not that Shisui was any better - tapped a nail on his desk top and ignored the way his dog shuffled around his feet as far as his leash would let him. "If the rumors are true… he may be making his way through the towns."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui blinked. "Does he - do that?" Please</span>
  <em>
    <span> don't make me hunt under every rock for this man.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The publisher snorted an ungracious laugh. "He’s very familiar around here," he reassured. "The bathhouse banned him a long time ago but Jiraiya-san is somewhat notorious for his… proclivities. No doubt he stops off for his inspiration in towns less accustomed to such behaviour. Go south," The man smirked. "I know he’s banned from any bathhouse from here to the northern border."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Blinking through the information, and crushing the desire to sneer, Shisui bid his thanks and left with all the eagerness of any keen fan. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Akira flitted overhead until Shisui had wandered towards the slopes again and ducked behind another boulder to seal the bag away. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Good tidings</span>
  </em>
  <span>?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui huffed a breath. "A lead, if a stretch." Akira hopped closer, curious, and Shisui met his intelligent gaze with a sardonic quirk to his lips. "It's not going to be fun, though."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn't.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There were countless little hamlets strung along the Lightning Mountain Range between here and the south coast and, apparently, they all had public bathhouses.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p><span>Shisui was going to </span><em><span>kill </span></em><span>Jiraiya</span> <span>when he found him.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>For the better part of two weeks, he flitted (skidded) and dashed (scrambled) over the unforgiving mountain plateaus as he checked for even a whisper of the missing Sannin's presence. His ears were fairly burning from the slander, the man himself absent but his poor impressions on the locals much more enduring. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>After the second scolding where the locals insisted he passed on various threats and messages to his 'friend', Shisui changed his story to that of a pissed brother looking to rough up the pervert creeping on his sister and friends.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>People were much more accommodating after that.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He asked around for sightings of a tall, white haired man. Inclined to brothels, inclined to public indecency, inclined to drink.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>If he didn't end up with his ears burning, he was pointed in useless directions. Like heck he was going to run all the way to Grass for a poker tournament that had just started up on a whim.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Still, three weeks of nothing solid, hunkered down on a mountainside with a ration bar and some grilled squirrel, watching Akira peck the bones clean, was still three weeks of frustration. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As they finally started the descent towards Sancho, Shisui Summoned Arakan for his first status report, having put it off with nothing really to report, and staunchly ignored his excitable flapping. Evidently, Akira had overstated the excitement factor of their ‘quest’; Shisui was even more grateful that he’d put off calling Kana, if this was the level he could expect in response. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Still, he felt a flush of shame when Arakan divulged how Itachi had Summoned him and asked about his cousin every other morning before work. That was the good thing about sharing a Contract; Arakan didn't even have to fly all the way back to Konoha to deliver his messages, merely leaping between Shisui, to the Realm and then back out to Itachi. He’d have his reply within the hour if his cousin wasn't busy. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Indeed, Itachi’s message arrived before Shisui could even make it to the village, longer than mission briefs strictly allowed; evidently, he’d added his own words after transferring the Sandaime’s. Shisui pondered how that had gone over, Itachi running messenger for his absent cousin directly to the Hokage. He had no doubt people had noticed. Something interesting to keep an eye on, via Arakan, at least. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Sancho was, unlike pretty much every other settlement in Lightning Country, not huddled between sheer cliffs or built at the peak of a mountain. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The cliffs overlooked the sea, sheer drops to the churning water below.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>At this altitude, the brittle bushland dared to grow into stubby trees and fuller foliage, as crooked as they were beaten by the wind, visible roots clutching the rocks like desperate hands. The buildings were, yet again, built into the natural rock itself, those characteristic bridge-like walkways zigzagging between them all; the only difference from those towns further inland were the higher sides, no doubt as protection against the buffeting sea winds in storms or blustery days. Shisui knew, from his vague academy days and the world history Inoichi had occasionally quizzed him on, that this was because Lightning Country was so heavily afflicted by storms - aptly named. The houses, if struck by lightning or flooded by great waves, would weather damage far better than a purely manmade structure. The metal walkways were the only exception, a material that wouldn't rot in the damp clouds and was thoroughly earthed to waylay electrical mishaps.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The larger buildings, like those of the hospital and library - because Sancho was a sea town and the country’s main port - were intricately and skilfully carved, impressions of buildings suggested with every smack of the sculptor's chisel. In fact, besides Kumogakure itself, Shisui was sure that almost every town in Lightning Country had been built in this distinct manner. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was one of those brighter days, the clouds lingering in smaller patches as opposed to the blanket covering that generally characterised the lower regions, and the blue sky beamed brightly from the horizon. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The water itself was deep, shifting greyish blues and murky greens, frothing where it beat against the port built down the cliff-drop and the rocks themselves. The stone here was unique, sandy toned for the most part, but striped in different mineral deposits if you approached from out at sea. Ranging from slate to reddish-clay, Shisui had seen the Tiger Cliffs of Sancho on many postcards in a general store. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>As a commercial hub, Shisui had less to worry about when it came to sticking out but that didn't mean he lowered his scarf or washed the blue pigment from around his eyes. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Kumo had, after all, been one of the villages to attack and destroy Uzushiogakure. Seals were a big no-no.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>……………………………………………………………..</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"What is he </span>
  <em>
    <span>thinking</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" Shisui raged, kicking a loose stone and thrusting his hands under his scarf to grab fistfuls of his curls. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They’d been in Sancho for two days and the Uchiha had searched everywhere for any hint of Jiriaya’s presence… even just a clue where he was headed. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Nothing</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>Crows are a meritocracy</span>
  </em>
  <span>," Akira snubbed him from a nearby rock, watching Shisui pace with unnerving interest.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui ignored that unhelpful comment for the time being, to focused on cursing his sworn leader. "What kind of person actually catcalls </span>
  <em>
    <span>teenagers</span>
  </em>
  <span>? Or anyone!" He flung his arms skyward. "He’s, what? </span>
  <em>
    <span>Fifty</span>
  </em>
  <span>! I can’t be expected to bring an asshole like that back to the village and - what? Swear </span>
  <em>
    <span>allegiance</span>
  </em>
  <span> to him?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Akira clicked his beak pointedly. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>You said he was a respected figure, Summoner."</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui’s pacing, which had slowed to a stop in his distraction at his potential future serving a pervert, immediately started up again. Agitation made every movement jerky.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I know!" He whirled to face the Crow with something feverish and unhappy lighting his dark eyes. "I used to think he was just an eccentric person! Shinobi have their coping mechanisms and writing erotic literature wasn't the worst!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>This was the man who had trained the Yondaime!</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The sun was setting, casting the water purple and the skies a deep red, the heat of summer chased away by the cool winds. The light painted Shisui’s profile pink, auburn highlights catching on the shine of the curls that had been yanked free of his scarf.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>What kind of person would their Godaime be? The Hokage had to be strong, yes, but they also had to represent the Konohan people. If there was any truth to the horrible things he’d been told - people, when they'd realised that Shisui was trying to ‘hunt the offender down,’ had gone into great detail regaling Jiraiya’s horrible behaviour - then they were in serious shit. Sure, shinobi could be a little… wild. Heck, Anko had made more than a few lewd insinuations over the years and Genma was an incorrigible flirt towards anything that breathed, but Jiriaya was… different. Shinobi guarded and promoted the concept of consent </span>
  <em>
    <span>fiercely</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>(Peeping, it seemed, might have been his most common offence but it damn-sure wasn't his only one.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui’s gaze traced along the sealine, over the port below their camp, before finally coming to rest on his Summon. "My leader is also the most skilled and popular person for the job," he pointed out.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Akira quirked his head to gaze at Shisui with one beady eye. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Is there not a line of succession?"</span>
  </em>
  <span> He queried. </span>
  <em>
    <span>"They are kin in some manner."</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Well -"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He snapped his mouth shut.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Shodaime...and his brother, the Nidaime… who had been the sensei of the Sandaime… and Minato-sama had been his own student’s -</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"It’s not the same," Shisui hedged, not quite believing his own words. "It’s about strength."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Akira wasn't quite finished however. "Is this venture not a further consolidation of that trend?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Sandaime had made it clear that he only considered his own students appropriate candidates, after all. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Hm.</span>
  </em>
  
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"The Sannin are legendary," Shisui bit the inside of his cheek and slumped down onto the rock beside Akira, all the wind taken from his sails. The Crow hopped onto his lap and flexed his talons pointedly until the Uchiha began preening the small feathers on top of his head, rubbing their waxy coating off between his fingers. "Jiraiya is incredibly talented, a </span>
  <em>
    <span>Sage, </span>
  </em>
  <span>and we need him… especially with Orochimaru having cut his ties and Danzo's machinations revealed, we need to promote that strong position."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Akira warbled quietly in the back of his throat in pleasure when Shisui scritched a nail in just the right place. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>You said your nest was strong; how can there be no other to bear such a mantle</span>
  </em>
  <span>?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui sat back for a moment and rolled the question around in his head for a long while. The sun sank further, the colours of the sky and sea deepening to plums and indigos as the light faded. "Taichou could," He finally spoke, the words seemingly dragged slowly from him. It wasn't reluctance that held him fast; more knowledge that, for all the older nin was a talented shinobi - a true genius, in a way - and the best of Captains, he was not in the right place for such a promotion. Would maybe never be. "But he won't. Shikaku could… but he would probably eviscerate the poor person to pop the question."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His Uncle was strong enough but he was the Uchiha Head </span>
  <em>
    <span>and</span>
  </em>
  <span> the Chief of Police… those duties aside, he had </span>
  <em>
    <span>literally</span>
  </em>
  <span> just tried to stage a coup to forcibly steal control of the Seat of the Hokage. No, </span>
  <em>
    <span>somehow</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Shisui didn't think that would work out well. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Inoichi - the spark was snubbed as soon as it had been struck. His sensei was just over two years away from early retirement. Hopping from Department Head to Hokage was not the direction the blonde was trying to go in. Most of the Clan Heads were viable but then...not. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Chouza, both an incredibly strong shinobi and a charismatic person, had very firmly stayed in the Genin sensei rotation, even when his first team - Gai, Ebisu and Genma - had all reached their current, high, positions. He’d only stepped back a few years ago to focus on Konoha's politics and the Akimichi Head was one of the most diligent politicians, alongside the Hyuuga, in the Clan Council. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He stared at the churning water and admitted to being stumped. It felt like no one was available - which was breathlessly ridiculous because they were the largest and, considered by many, the strongest of the hidden villages so how could they be so short on candidates?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Kyuubi</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>If the Yondaime was still alive, this wouldn't be an issue </span>
  <em>
    <span>(obviously)</span>
  </em>
  <span>. But there was also Uzumaki Kushina, who would have undoubtedly made a glorious Kage.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Even Mikoto might have, had she not very obviously taken a step back from active duty. He’d wondered, admittedly, when his Aunt retained a lot of her impressive skill and began dabbling in politics, but now, as a member of the Hokage Council, she was as free to ascend the Seat of the Hokage as she was barred from it.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It would look - to cut a long conspiracy short - like she’d manipulated herself from the outskirts of the village right to the hat. No, Mikoto needed to hold her position in the Advisory Council or they’d risk having a hard shutout once more and then, if that happened, Shisui wasn't convinced that the two of them - three, counting Itachi - could keep the Clan under control if that happened. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I really hope this is all character assassination," Shisui groaned, aggravated and wholly convinced to the unfortunate contrary. "Jiraiya hasn't been seen since February here, when he arrived at the port and -"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui let his voice fall silent, eyes locked on the horizon. Fishing boats, tethered close enough to port not to be washed out in the tides or storms, bobbed with each great wave. The wind rushed over the land with increasing fervour, whipping Shisui's cheeks red and dragging the tide up against the cliff walls ominously. Their pitiful camp fire, little more than two fistfuls of broken bark, spluttered out.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Uchiha ignored it all, eyes fastened to something unseen in the distance.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Why would he be here?" Shisui murmured, seemingly without thought.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Akira examined his Summoner's intent gaze before peering down at the boats for the obvious solution. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Mayhaps he bartered for passage elsewhere?</span>
  </em>
  <span>" Shinobi often walked on water but boats were altogether more convenient modes of travel.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui didn't look down at the Crow. "Jiraiya is a spymaster, if anything could make him go to ground like this, it would be a delicate situation where he couldn't afford capture or discovery at any cost. And, just across the water here, a political devolution has been boiling."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>The water churns</span>
  </em>
  <span>," Akira clackered in agreement. The ongoings of this realm didn't overly concern the Crows, except where they affected Shisui and Itachi. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Kiri faced a night of bloodshed," Shisui divulged, meeting the bird's curious gaze at last. "The villagers rose up and slaughtered many of those with kekkei genkai in a single day. They say the rivers ran red with blood and stained the ocean."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>His eyes drifted back towards where he knew the Mist Islands were located. The sun had disappeared completely now, leaving the sky a deep purple and the water nearly black against the paler rockface. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"That was two years ago now but there's been a huge uptick in Kiri-nin deflection and desertion. If something's coming, I bet Jiraiya is right in the thick of it."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But...what proof did he have? Other than a hunch and a possible coincidence, he had nothing to validate something as dangerous as an infiltration of the Bloody Mist.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ao would </span>
  <em>
    <span>know. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui trailed another finger down Akira's spine. "Go hunt for the night," he sighed. "We'll investigate in the morning."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>……………………………………………………………..</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Before dawn could break, Shisui and Akira had made their way down to the docks.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The sky was still dark, a deep murky grey just barely lightened by the approaching sunrise, and the waters swelled like squid ink against the bows of the fishing boats.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Fishermen, Shisui knew, sailed out to cast their nets in the earliest hours of morning for the day's first haul and, luckily, they'd been sharp enough to catch them before the boats could tie off from the dockings.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He wasn't going to waste anyone's time. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Excuse me!" Shisui waved a hand as he civilian-jogged towards the nearest vessel. He'd bought an overskirt last night to add to his costume and the extra fabric swished around his boots. Knowing that Ao's stolen Byakugan would catch on his sealwork from the other side of the island, he'd been glad to have invested in blue eyeshadow instead of genjutsu. It was something, at least. "I'm looking for my father-in-law!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>One of the fishermen poked his head over the side, a knitted cap concealing most of his platinum hair. "A-hoy! Fisher or passenger?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Passenger," Shisui cupped his hands around his mouth. "South-East-bound!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The man's head bobbed for a moment before he disappeared and then came back to throw a thick length of cord that thumped with great weight when it hit the dock. "Climb up!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui tucked in the end of his scarf and did just that, fingers wrapping around the thick braid and only just meeting. He braced his feet against the side of the hull and slowly walked his way onto the deck, making sure to huff and puff like a civilian would.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The fisherman, now that Shisui could see him up close, was a relatively young man. Probably only a few years older than Shisui, in fact, with deeply tanned skin and hazelnut eyes surrounded by white-blonde lashes. "What's the name you're looking for?" He asked brusquely. They'd need to set out shortly.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I doubt he used one," Shisui admitted because it was probably true. "Old man is a gambler, see?" The fisherman nodded sagely. Overhead, a couple of swabbing boys scurried across the rigging like they'd been born up there. "But he's hard to miss, big fella - another half head taller than me - with long white hair and red markings on his cheeks." Shisui scratched his own awkwardly. "He's a… bit of a lech, in all honesty, but my wife's worried about him."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The fisherman waved a large hand as if to brush off any of Shisui's shamefulness. "I have a brother like that, always down the pub when he shouldn't be. I don't remember a man like that seeking passage and none of the other ships have mentioned him. Hold on a moment."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The fisherman turned to starboard and hollered up to his shipmate in the crow's nest. "Looking for a passenger, white hair, red cheeks, big guy!" </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The other man called back in understanding before striking a match and lighting a lantern kept behind a shuttered glass screen. Then, in a code-like sequence, he started flickering the shutters in the direction of the nearest boat.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui smiled a little at the helpfulness; they could have just pitched him back to the dock and he'd have been forced to yell up at every single ship before they cast off. He turned back to the first fisherman and bowed respectfully. "Thank you so much for your help, fisherman-san." He straightened and stuffed a hand into his satchel for the supplies he'd bought last night. He gripped the punnet of fruits and pulled two bright orange citruses free. "For your troubles."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The fisherman's brows winged upwards, but he didn't look a gift horse in the mouth, taking one fruit in each hand with a pleased smile. "You're welcome!" He jerked his head towards the crow's nest again. "Anything?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The reply filtered down, thin on the breeze. "A man like that never returned a hired boat in February! He went south in a storm and hasn't been seen since so the tackleman made a record!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>finally.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Sandaime had said that Jiraiya had been silent for three months, which fitted in almost perfectly in this timeline. He must have gone silent when he entered Mist Island territory.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Are you headed southward?" He asked the man beside him, who had already begun to peel the thick, fuzzy rind off one of the fruits. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"We fish in Lightning waters," He replied around a mouthful of juice, "Nothing that could get you to land."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui squinted. This sucked but he needed to get to those Islands so - "Close enough to swim?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The man paused in his chewing to drag judgemental eyes up and down Shisui's layers of clothing. Lightning Country was colder than Shisui was accustomed to. "The water is deep. You'll drown."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>I don't want to even think about that.</span>
  </em>
  <span> "I'm a good swimmer." He </span>
  <em>
    <span>had been.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Before. "That's my problem, can you get me close enough?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The fisherman tore another bite from the citrus flesh and then held up the half-eaten fruit, juice running down the inside of his wrist. "You have any more of these?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui smiled.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The fishing boat was a decent size, longer and thinner than perhaps expected, but taller to be able to handle the size of the waves when the ocean was whipped into a frenzy.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The vessel pitched and yawed in the rougher water, the sky and sea still murky in the predawn light. Shisui, as a passenger, had been told to grab onto the mast and, essentially, not let go.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Akira might have flown overhead but, when the winds picked up, Shisui had whistled sharply for him to descend and, before any of the (admittedly extremely busy) fishermen could see, tucked the Crow carefully into the folds of his cloak and scarf. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was like carrying a very odd baby against his chest (again, because Ino had loved sleeping in those scarves).</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They travelled for a good while, going outwards and planning to herd the schools of fish back towards Lightning waters, and soon Mountain Country was a smudge of jagged peaks to the west. Within the hour, the land was behind them also.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The bank of mist rolled in when they were properly out to sea, somewhere south-east of both Lightning and Mountains, and ready to cast the first net.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They needed to be extremely careful not to attract any attention; Kiri-nin could sense movement with their specialised fog jutsu and Ao would have memorised Shisui's chakra signature. However, he also knew that he was pretty free to use chakra all the way out here; because Ao might recognise him in an instant but that didn't mean he'd </span>
  <em>
    <span>know </span>
  </em>
  <span>to look for him. So, with that in mind, Shisui formed a shadow clone and flashed his Sharingan; every single person aboard would believe that the clone had stayed with them until they came closer to one of little rockpool Islands, when he would seemingly jump ship and swim for land.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Easy.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Sticking to the side of the ship with chakra - he didn't much fancy the pitching water, thanks - Shisui released Akira back into the air and immediately reached for his core, for a certain someone waiting impatiently -</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The explosion of white smoke merged seamlessly with the heavy cloak of fog around them, a huge shadow flashing in and out of sight like some kind of nightmarish wraith.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>Kana</span>
  </em>
  <span>!" He called, stretching the cover of his genjutsu and fluttering his chakra to gain the Summon's attention.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The shadow circled back, darkening and focusing as the fog pressed thinner and -</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She was a truly magnificent sight, bigger than a bison or a bear with a wingspan that could only be called gargantuan. Kana's beak cracked wide in a joyful screech - she loved stretching her wings in the different Realms - and Shisui leapt into her legs just as she swooped overhead. Each beat of her wings brought them higher and higher, jolting his grip on her silken feathers as the Uchiha carefully climbed up her crest and over her neck to sit in the divot in front of her wings. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Knowing that human tongue would get him nowhere - she insisted on feigning deafness when spoken to in anything but Crow - Shisui carefully leaned forwards so that his Summon could hear the clatter of his directions beside her earhole. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Bank left</span>
  </em>
  <span>!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Akira, fed up with racing someone ten times his size, swooped in to land on Shisui's lap in a fluster of heaving feathers. He was the very picture of affronted pride and immediately began righting his plumage.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui, content to let Kana fly for a while, focused instead on another Summoning, bringing his hands up through the handsigns and then cupping them together to catch Arakan as he appeared.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"Summoner</span>
  </em>
  <span>!" The smaller Crow cheeped in surprise. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Your report-</span>
  </em>
  <span>!"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>-can wait, Arakan</span>
  </em>
  <span>," Shisui interjected, cupping the Summon against his chest so that the wind wouldn't batter him away. </span>
  <em>
    <span>"I need you to find a signature for me - no," </span>
  </em>
  <span>he continued before the Crow could ask,</span>
  <em>
    <span> "I don't have a lead for you but it's nothing so direct. The Sannin is a Sage and he should reek of nature chakra - can you find any?"</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Below them, the first few jagged inlets of rocks emerged from the roiling sea. Mist wasn't a neat little continent in its own right but a trawling collection of ragged isles, with Kiri built like an overarching spiderweb. They had two other settlements, beside the shinobi village, and it was little wonder that the savagery of the Kiri shinobi was one of the only things keeping the economy afloat. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Arakan puffed up a little, clearly agitated. </span>
  <em>
    <span>"I can sense other Summons, Summoner</span>
  </em>
  <span>," he hedged with clear uncertainty. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui's eyes widened. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Can you tell what they are?"</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Arakan's claws bit painfully into Shisui's palms, what skin was not protected by his wrappings and bracers</span>
  <em>
    <span>. "I cannot be sure."</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Fuck… but surely-</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>Do Summons feel the same as a Sage would?"</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Arakan glanced at Akira before admitting that he didn't think so.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Ah. Arakan had probably never met a Sage to draw the comparison from. But-</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>Have you met the Toads? Do you think you could find a Toad Sage</span>
  </em>
  <span>?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Wait.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jiraiya was fire-natured, like most Konohan shinobi. Kiri had no current Konohan prisoners, as far as T&amp;I's Intel extended.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>Is there evidence of someone with fire natured chakra</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" He would stick out like a red light in a sea of blues to someone as skilled as Arakan.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Crow cocked his head. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>We need to get closer but perhaps."</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Shisui's head shot up, scarf threatening to fly off in the winds as Kara, listening in, started to descend towards the main landmasses. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>We're about ten minutes out</span>
  </em>
  <span>," he peered at the smudges visible through the heavy fog below. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>How close will you need?"</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The robin-sized Summon followed the Uchiha's gaze over the beat of Kara's wing. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They were silent for a long while but for the beat of Kana's great wings and the whistle of the air as it rushed past.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Arakan's needle-sharp talons clenched deeper into Shisui's palms. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>I have something!"</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Relief, sharp and sweet, raged war with trepidation in Shisui's chest.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They were going in.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>A/N- </p>
<p>Kana: 'powerful', <br/>The publishing house dog: shiba inu</p>
<p>Shisui: akira…. Jiraiya isnt just a Sannin… he’s an author<br/>Akira: a scholar! Indeed, how impressive, to share knowledge with others-<br/>Shisui: no...no, no, it’s more… fictional. Reading to enjoy… for leisure purposes.<br/>Akira: i see… still, a noble venture to entertain and craft stories for all-<br/>Shisui: NO- err, no… it’s adult fiction.<br/>Akira: adult? <br/>Shisui: it’s...explicit. Sexual… poorly written, i’ll admit, and pretty aggaravatingly stereotypical and he researches by peeking on unsuspecting women-<br/>Akira:..... There is nothing wrong with carnal pleasure HOWEVER THIS JIRIAYA CHARACTER IS VERY CRUDE AND IMMORAL SO I SHALL HAVE TO FORFEIT THIS MISSION-<br/>Shisui: WAIT-<br/>Akira: *poof*</p>
<p>Jiriaya… i have so many fuckign issues with you.</p>
<p>Society if anime ditched the pervert trope: *flying cars, cured all diseases, no global warming*</p>
<p>Shisui when he finds Jiraiya: FUCKING GOOSECHASE AND OF ALL THE PLACES YOU TAKE ME TO THE WATER COUNTRY RAWR *strangles a Sannin with his bare hands*<br/>Me, eating popcorn: you're doing amazing sweetie~</p>
<p>For those of you wondering how Shisui can perfectly (for a human) mimic Crow Language, including clacking beak noises… its funny lol.</p>
<p>They inserted a piece of metal, like a cap, over his back teeth, both top and bottom, on so he can smack them together to copy the sounds. </p>
<p>Like the clicky thing that lets them communicate with raptors in Jurassic world lol but Shisui's accent is AWFUL</p>
<p>Itachi's Crow is marginally better because his mouth is smaller and they therefore echo differently.</p>
<p>Yes, they had this done in return for signing the contract. Yes, Crows with only talons did the procedure. Yes, they had to learn Crow from scratch.</p>
<p>Yes, they never fucking told their families that whilst they were away they had a dental operation Pfffffft only those two know that their teeth have been messed with, to everyone else its all oooooh mystic blessed with Animal Communication ooooooh lmao</p>
<p>I cackle so hard every time I write a scene where someone witnesses Shisui speak Crow pfffft</p>
<p>Normal teen rebellion: let's get a small tattoo or a bellybutton piercing!<br/>Shisui and Itachi, preteen: let's get our TEETH CAPPED SO WE CAN SPEAK BIRD</p>
<p>Those of you willing to poke holes in this…. Those holes are for ventilation.</p>
<p>Please remember to comment, thank you!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Rummage</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>“The wind howled and raged a storm, as if rummaging through the night for something it had left behind.”<br/>- Meeta Ahluwalia</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Kana’s wingspan was thrice as long as Shisui was tall and skimmed the treetops as they approached the ground.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The fog was heavy, so much so that Shisui could barely see his hand in front of his face, but Arakan was perched on his shoulder and would be their eyes in a different way. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d decided to land them in one of the marshy coves, uninhabited and far enough from civilisation to afford them some privacy to plot a bit. The water was shallow here, ankle-deep and sludgy with sediment and stirred up sands and stones, but deep enough that Akira had insisted upon staying on Kana’s back lest his feathers become dirtied. Shisui, shrugging, had stayed astride as well as the bear-sized Summon waded her way inland. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was utterly silent, save for the gurgle of water and the faint caws of native birds in the distance. Shisui's breathing seemed far too loud.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The sun had risen, although it wasn't terribly obvious with the bad weather, but it did mean that, should they enter the Village Proper, most habitants would still be asleep. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>How's the signature now?"</span>
  </em>
  <span> Shisui clacked lowly, reaching to rip holes in his overskirt so that he could still reach his tantō thigh holsters through the pockets of his pants. Then, he reached back to make sure he could reach the pommel of his Kamu-tantō by his collar. Satisfied, he pulled his scarf free to retie it to cover all but his eyes, the skin around which was still liberally smudged with smoky blue makeup. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Can you get a feel for it?"</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Arakan waddled his way down Shisui’s bent arm to tilt his head this way and that. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>It feels inhuman</span>
  </em>
  <span>," He seemed uncertain to confirm his exact suspicions, no doubt unwilling to be proven wrong should he call it, "</span>
  <em>
    <span>But I shall be able to follow its pulse to the end."</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui’s brows, hidden beneath his blue scarf, rose a little against the strict press of fabric. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>Inhuman</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" He parroted. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>A Summon, like you guys</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" Another Summon could answer to any of the shinobi here.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But Arakan was shaking his little head before the Uchiha’s question had even fully emerged. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>It is not similar as humans are to each other</span>
  </em>
  <span>," he denied quietly. Kana wordlessly encouraged his assessment with a low warble in the back of her throat, the vibrations resonating through Shisui's legs.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Jounin sat back on Kana for a long moment, gnawing on the inside of his cheek as she gradually picked her way up the shoreline to the sticky, wet beachfront. In an arc around them, the dark rockways rose up from the sea, all coated in a thick duvet of purple moss. Further inland, deciduous trees poked from between the rocks from what precious rare crannies of earth existed. In the distance, he could just about make out the spires of the tallest Kiri buildings. If Shisui ran at </span>
  <em>
    <span>his</span>
  </em>
  <span> pace, he’d be in the village outskirts in mere minutes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"A third type…" He clicked his tongue in aggravation. "It must be Sage, it’s got to be him. "</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Of all the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Kami-damned</span>
  </em>
  <span> places for Jiraiya to have holed himself up in, it just </span>
  <em>
    <span>had</span>
  </em>
  <span> to be the one </span>
  <em>
    <span>surrounded</span>
  </em>
  <span> by water, didn't it? </span>
  <em>
    <span>Fuck this</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Teeth set on edge, Shisui swung his leg up, the split sides of his blanket-thick navy skirt easily allowing for the movement, and dropped onto the sand with a depressing swidge. Kana’s great head swung around, shamelessly demanding a preen in payment of her services without a single word spoken and Shisui absentmindedly acquiesced. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>This is what’s going to happen; Akira, Kana, you two go back to the Realm to wait for my signal - I’d ask you to keep watch but if Ao looks up and spots you, it’s game over before anything has even begun. Arakan and I will track Jiraiya down and convince him to quit the Village before exchanging so much as a greeting. We’ll go from there. The most important thing is that no one ever knows we were here, okay</span>
  </em>
  <span>?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Kana clacked her beak in displeasure before demanding in her thick tone; "</span>
  <em>
    <span>You’ll Summon me to ensure your escape</span>
  </em>
  <span>." It was not a request.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui, knowing the price of denying Kana was nothing worth paying, agreed immediately. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With a silent explosion of white smoke, both Crows disappeared to the Summoning Realm, leaving Arakan to flutter into the cup of Shisui’s palms. For all his eagerness, he was fairly shivering with nerves and Shisui slowly stroked his head until the tremble subsided.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>The signature is eastward, Summoner</span>
  </em>
  <span>," He eventually cawed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Crushing his own core down to that of a child and manipulating a henge to match, Shisui tossed the Crow into the air and, when Arakan disappeared like a flicker of shadow into the fog, took off running after him.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>…………………………………………………………….</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>Kirigakure was swampy, humid and unnervingly quiet.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Village was built in dome-like structures - so that the rain ran straight off them, Shisui assumed - and was as grey as its surroundings. It was large, sprawling over several rivers that rushed to re-join the sea, and cast from grey stone or concrete. Soggy vines clung to every surface, drawing like veils from the walkways into the canals below. The roads were gravel until they weren't, the stones washed downhill in every rainfall and by the smaller brooks that had formed alongside the paths.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ever since the ascension of the Yondaime Mizukage, the Village’s prospects had plummeted from bad to worse, both financially and socially.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The moniker, ‘Bloody Mist,’ was horrendously well-earned.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fog, Shisui knew, had a dampening effect on sound as well as hindering vision. But the streets were so quiet - it was early, he told himself sternly, and most people were still asleep - that he couldn't quite quell that sensation of trepidation. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It felt... bated. Like a drawn breath before the snap of a bear trap. Shisui's fleeting steps were all the more careful for it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Concealed like another homeless orphan - because, in the unlikely incidence that anyone managed to circumvent his precautions, seeing a human figure was far less suspicious than a bird with the pathways of a person - Shisui picked his way through rain-soaked alleyways and up the hill towards what could only be described as a </span>
  <em>
    <span>ghetto</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The </span>
  <em>
    <span>dip </span>
  </em>
  <span>in Kiri's population evidently hadn't helped with a housing shortage.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The shelters were half-rotten, the wood coated in moss and completely sodden through. Some planks, especially those planted in the mud, were swollen with damp and splintered fuzzily. Many were home to large clusters of pale golden mushroom growths, some as large as dinner plates. He fervently hoped the spores weren't dangerous. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There were about seven streets built like that, a tiny neighbourhood a testament of the harsh reality of poverty. Even as Shisui started up the hill, dashing between each build, the heavens opened and rain started to patter once more.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was sobering, reminding Shisui of the wealth of his own Village acutely; a poor leader, like the Mizukage, left their people to this suffering. In the back of his mind, he wondered what kind of luxuries the Mizukage enjoyed at the expense of the villagers. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Konoha, for all the Sandaime had extended international aid - Yumegakure being only one example - offered no such support to its enemies. And Kiri, bloodied with the destruction of Uzushio, would likely always be considered such. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui kept his senses stretched wide, consistently scanning for an approaching signature and, more specifically, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Ao’s</span>
  </em>
  <span> position in the village. Kiri was too sprawling, however, and he couldn't find him; for obvious reasons, he wasn't going to stray from Arakan’s shadow to hunt him down. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The small Crow, fluttering overhead to replicate the flight patterns of normal birds, slowly led Shisui through the abandoned streets to a two-story house with grey shutters on the windows that did little to conceal the fact that they were... open for business.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Above the doorway, a red paper lantern glowed under the protection of the porch awning. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Quickly, Shisui flexed his henge to add a few years - Madams were strict with their clientele and a child was </span>
  <em>
    <span>definitely</span>
  </em>
  <span> not on that list - and, on a whim, turned his skin shallower, pale in a different way, whilst lightening his eyes to a muddy grey. His shoulders narrowed and he shrunk a few inches, which, coupled with his clothes, leant a certain androgyny to his figure that would prove invaluable.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Madame was probably hosting her clients - and Shisui didn't particularly want to put a face to his presence in her house - so the Uchiha let himself in with a practiced jiggle of the handle, reaching up to silence the overdoor bell before it could make a single chime. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The house wasn't large and the entrance hall was dark and cramped, lit only by three garishly red lanterns tied to the ceiling to match the one outside. There were three doorways immediately visible and a narrow, curling staircase in the very back. Arakan, who had landed on the Jounin’s shoulder when Shisui had tucked himself into the doorway, jabbed his beak upwards to signal where he could feel the Sage chakra originating. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There was a loud burst of laughter from the first room just after Shisui crept past it, merely jolting the Uchiha out of his skin in surprise, which quickly devolved into loud - fake - moaning. Shisui’s silent steps fell faster and he took the stairs two at a time, lifting a hand as he went to transfer the Summon to his hand to better guide them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The landing was almost an exact replica of the downstairs except for the presence of a single, murky window fitted at the end of the hall, looking out over the tiny porch onto the street below. The floor was sticky, spilled alcohol not having been cleaned up quickly enough to spare the boards. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Arakan jerked his head towards the single door on the left-hand side, which was, unfortunately enough, the one making the most racket. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steeling his nerves and allowing Arakan huddle on the back of his neck, Shisui reached out and gripped the edge of the sliding screen -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>- and yanked it open.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>For a long second, the occupants didn't seem to register that their room had been invaded; three young women sprawled playfully across the crimson futon and giggling delightedly at the man sat smack bang in the middle of them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then, when dark eyes met Shisui’s over the rim of his sake dish, the laughter died a swift death.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jiraiya was just as imposing as Shisui had heard he was; a big, broad-shouldered man who, even sitting down, was clearly taller than Shisui’s own not-inconsiderable height. He had a great mane of snow-white hair, like a lion’s, and two thick lines of red ink marking each cheek from his eyes, like someone had taken a brush to his skin and just dragged downwards.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His voice, when he spoke, was deep but deceptively mild, "This is a private room," His mouth stretched in a smirk, taking in the fall of Shisui’s skirt but seeming disappointed that his cloak hid the rest of his torso. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Urgh.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui crushed the urge to narrow his gaze - there was little use in aggravating a Kami-damned Sage, not to mention a Sannin - and inclined his head, stepping inside the room and gesturing for the three women to leave. "I’m a messenger, Jiraiya-sama. Please."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sighing deeply, the older nin drained his drink before casting a slick look over the three girls. "We’ll continue this later, my lovelies!" With a pout - whether at the interruption of a paying client or because they weren't going to be allowed to eavesdrop - the girls, dressed in haphazardly pulled on robes, clambered to their feet. Jiraiya shamelessly dragged his eyes over their exposed legs, slapping one girl’s bum as she passed him and laughing smugly when she squeaked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Beneath his scarf, Shisui’s jaw twitched.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The girls, having grabbed their instruments and slippers as they went, finally scurried past the Jounin and he gratefully slid the door shut behind them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jiraiya wasn't even looking at him, pouring another serving of alcohol and running a hand through his wild hair. "You here to try and kill me, huh? Where you from this time, kid?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui fished for the Sandaime’s letter and ignored the way the Sannin’s muscular forearms ticked a little at the disappearance of his hand. He handed over the scroll, flashing his Sharingan for an instant - that kind of shit couldn't be copied by an enemy, like the usual authentication code could be.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jiraiya’s expression hardened immediately and -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui kept his Sharingan activated. There was something </span>
  <em>
    <span>interesting</span>
  </em>
  <span> about the Sannin’s face, his flesh, and he wanted to fully document it if this is something he could use to identify a Sage in the future. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There was a strange… blur to his features, like he was two images pressed together and not quite perfectly aligned and-</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui froze.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His eyes flickered over the entire room as Jiraiya cracked the seal on the scroll and set about reading the Sandaime’s belated words. He took in the heavy smoke of the incense-burner in the corner, the tightly shut windows, the ridiculous number of cheap cushions tossed about haphazardly, before allowing his eyes to return to the reason behind his mission.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jiraiya was half dressed, just as the girls had been, with his green yukata barely fastened around his waist and his underwear peeking out from between the folds. He wore nothing else, feet bare and legs hairy. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>This wasn't -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Arakan, having landed on the back of Shisui’s scarf, out of sight of both the Sannin and the three women, squawked in alarm when Shisui’s Sharingan spun into action, morphing into his Mangekyou, and his chakra reached out and </span>
  <em>
    <span>ripped</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The illusion fell away just as Shisui, abruptly utterly </span>
  <em>
    <span>furious</span>
  </em>
  <span>, lunged out and grabbed the small figure by its slimy neck and tore the Sandaime’s scroll from its fingers.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Where the </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck</span>
  </em>
  <span> is he?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The green Toad in his grip coughed and wheezed and Shisui snarled, fingers biting deeper. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Did he not fucking realise what he’d done</span>
  </em>
  <span>?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Arakan was airborne once more, cawing a slew of curses that the Uchiha hadn't even known </span>
  <em>
    <span>he’d</span>
  </em>
  <span> known, circling close to the dank ceiling as if he wanted to swoop down and claw the other Summon’s bulging eyes out. Crows </span>
  <em>
    <span>ate</span>
  </em>
  <span> frogs.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I was sent to gather intelligence!" The Toad gasped, digits fumbling with Shisui’s wrist for some relief. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fury and panic, flooding in equal measure, had Shisui’s blood roaring in his ears. Arakan hadn't been sensing a </span>
  <em>
    <span>Sage’s</span>
  </em>
  <span> presence, he’d been confused by the overlap of a Summon cloaked in one’s chakra. Fuck! Fucking shit</span>
  <em>
    <span>, fuck - </span>
  </em>
  <span>!</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"In a brothel?" The Uchiha demanded, rattling it a little harder before finally letting up on his grip a little. He didn't want to kill it after all, that would be massively counterproductive. "What interest does a Toad Summon have with a trio of working girls anyway, huh? What kind of 'laying low' is this?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"If I’m masquerading as my Summoner, why not act like him?" Shisui’s fingers flexed in warning. "I'm just doing a job!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"This is a </span>
  <em>
    <span>diversion</span>
  </em>
  <span>, be honest." There was no way that Jiraiya would go to such lengths to conceal a single lead like this if he didn't want to draw anyone hunting him into this mess too.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Which was exactly what Shisui had fallen for. Kami, shit -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He rattled the Toad again, ignoring the raised voices creeping through the door. The girls had snitched, "Where has he really gone?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Toad swallowed, the motion pressed painfully against the meat of Shisui’s tightening palm, and closed his eyes in resignation. "He’s hunting the Snake."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui went </span>
  <em>
    <span>white</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His grip loosened in shock, just enough for the Toad to wiggle free and immediately hop to put a few feet of distance between itself and strangulation. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Orochimaru</span>
  </em>
  <span>?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Another Sannin?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Toad grabbed his pipe and swung it overhead when Arakan, still cursing up a storm, swooping threateningly close, "He heard about experimentation on the continent and he knew exactly who would be behind that."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui's heart turned to lead. Orochimaru’s labs… where Tenzo had been born. He was working again…</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(Chances are he'd never stopped and wasn't that a nauseating thought?)</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Someone banged loudly on the door. "You pay for my girls or you get out!" A woman’s voice pierced the stalemate, accompanied by another thump, fist hitting the jam of the door. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The toad glanced behind him, panicking itself, and then -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>UnSummoned itself with a poof of white smoke.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui stared at the spot where it had been and the gravity of the situation settled over him like a death shroud.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Oh, shit.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Outside, something akin to a siren began wailing, the sound cresting higher and dipping lower inconsistently through the thick fog. In the streets, doors banged open and a flurry of voices added to the clamour outside.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Multiple chakra signatures approached, swift and bright through the fog as Shinobi responded to the call.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The alarm had sounded.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They needed to go. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Now.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In a flurry of motion, Shisui shoved the Sandaime’s letter back into the sealing scroll at his belt, forcing chakra down his bond with Arakan to force him back into the Summoning Realm and out of harm's way, and, between one heartbeat and the next, kicked open the single window and launched himself onto the nearest rooftop.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The world swam, blurring from the speed and the dense cloak of mist, but not enough that Shisui could miss the figure rushing over the top of a three-story tower in the distance.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hunter-nin uniform, short hair he knew was more blue than grey, and a misleading patch concealing one eye.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Ao</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His heart thundered in the cavern of his chest, the mist clinging wetly to what little of his skin was exposed to the elements, and it tingled with an odd energy.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Chakra sensing through the fog,</span>
  </em>
  <span> he realised with a beat of dread. They knew exactly where he was.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He shoved Shunshin through his limbs and made a break for the seafront.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>……………………………………………………………</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui sprinted over the rooftops, chakra keeping every step steady as the rain poured down in earnest and over two dozen Kiri-nin bore down on him from all directions.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shunshin bought him valuable time but, even with the unprecedented skill Shisui had earned with the technique, he was vastly outnumbered and greatly disadvantaged. He skidded and leapt in what he knew was the direction of the seafront but this was a village he didn't know -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And it was proving harder than even he had feared in the worst-case scenario; that was, exactly what was unfolding.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A Jounin, long green hair flowing wetly behind them, lunged forwards with an arm led by their katana and Shisui was forced to twist violently sideways to avoid the blow. He kicked the follow-up knife aside and ripped the blade free, using it to deflect several rounds of - no doubt poisoned - senbon that whistled through the air.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In the distance, Ao’s voice echoed as he roared out directions and orders and Shisui pushed his legs to go even faster, his body moving fluidly through every skid and jump. Not a motion was wasted, the streets flying by faster and faster as the Uchiha forced his Shunshin to carry him far ahead of his enemies -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shouts reached in his ears too late, the sounds belated like a beat synchronised wrong, and the force of the wind ripped Shisui’s scarf clean from his face to trail along behind him like some tattered banner.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The village fell back behind him, rocks transitioning into sand and the evergreen trees parting -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And the grey expanse of the seafront opened up before him like the slow push of double doors gaining admittance to freedom -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But these were Mist shinobi. And the sea was a continuation of themselves.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A flush of chakra had the water rising up to greet him, the sea attacking him like a feral animal, and Shisui -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>For a fraction of a second, blind panic reared its head as the roar of the water seemed to drown out reality.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And then he </span>
  <em>
    <span>snapped.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was the instinct of a cornered animal to lash out; he'd practiced so many minor suiton jutsu in the past months that his chakra just </span>
  <em>
    <span>reacted. </span>
  </em>
  <span>The waves were blown back by an invisible force and Shisui didn't waste a second wondering over how he'd done it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Instead, he skidded sideways, twisting back down the rocks - because </span>
  <em>
    <span>more</span>
  </em>
  <span> than his</span>
  <em>
    <span> life</span>
  </em>
  <span> depended on his escape - and the soles of his sandals sunk wetly into the sodden beachfront. He couldn't go to the water so directly, he’d be captured or drowned in a heartbeat.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But they were on an </span>
  <em>
    <span>island</span>
  </em>
  <span>! Where else was there to</span>
  <em>
    <span> go</span>
  </em>
  <span>?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His hands fairly itched to Summon Kana, to allow her to swoop down and carry him straight to safety, but -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d done nothing to so blatantly flaunt his presence here; Ao’s word that Shisui’s chakra signature was his own was hinged on Shisui being </span>
  <em>
    <span>captured</span>
  </em>
  <span>, dead or alive, and the proof of Ao’s Byakugan. That stolen, famously </span>
  <em>
    <span>Konohan,</span>
  </em>
  <span> Dojutsu.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If he Summoned a Crow here, it was an admittance of guilt; only he and Itachi had signed with the Crows and confirming that Shisui was the cloaked figure ‘invading’ a foreign village (one with such non-existent negotiations with Konoha) would put his own village in a pinch. Kiri could demand reparations, monetary or otherwise, and then what?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If a Kiri-nin had been found in Konoha… </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He needed to get away first before calling someone as distinctive as Kana. And he needed to be </span>
  <em>
    <span>careful.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The water rushed towards him again, keeping him corralled as the Kiri-nin tried to catch up, and Shisui spared only a second to circulate chakra to his chest, suck in deep and -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>- force the water back with a great explosion of violent, amber fire.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He twisted his head, allowing the flames to catch on the nearest trees and some unfortunately wooden houses - Shisui might have felt sorry for these people but he wouldn't hold back in a fight, his own loyalties were worth more - as he crafted a wall of flame that tore across the space between them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Enclosed in an inferno, that even the rain couldn't dampen down, Shisui felt a sense of calm settle over him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The water was, for the moment, unable to reach him and, when it did crush his flames to steam, he would revive it again. He wasn't helpless.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(The sight of the ocean responding, vaguely limb-shaped attacks reaching out to draw him into a watery death, chilled him to the bone. His stomach dropped and his eyes felt like they were burning in his skull.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His Mangekyou spun so fast it blurred.)</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui tore across the sand, focusing entirely on his Shunshin now that he was no longer trapped within the Village Proper, and the signatures behind him started to fall further and further back as they struggled to match his raw speed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He knew they would keep coming, that Ao had a lock on his position, but he could buy himself some precious time.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He made a lunge for the treeline, eyes half-focused on his surroundings as he leapt between the rocks, with the rest of his attention fixated on where the other shinobi were currently positioned and how they were responding to his own movements.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A hunter-nin anticipated his path, avoiding the frenzied water and trying to find cover, and cut across another of those streams that wove right through Kirigakure to spit a slew of ice needles into his path.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Conscious that depending solely on Katon jutsu would provide further evidence against him, Shisui rushed through the handsigns to one of his precious few Futon techniques. With a devastating swipe of his palms, his chakra fizzled and howled and rammed a surge of compressed air directly towards the oncoming ice. The needles flung back towards the Hunter-nin, the trees creaking and cracking under the strain and -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The sands whipped up, ruining the mist-sensing jutsu, and completely shrouded the Uchiha from view.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Praise Kami -</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui shoved his hands behind him, Shunshin-ing forwards with the winds thrusting out behind him -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Time slowed to a crawl, thick as the sludgy sand, and Shisui’s expression could only be called </span>
  <em>
    <span>wild</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He lashed out with a sharp kick, cracking the damaged tree completely in half with a sound like thunder, and sucked in another chestful of burning fire. This jutsu was hotter, red as blood as it flickered with images of dragons and tigers and bit into the sparse forest around him like a monster starved. It spread back the way he’d come and tore up the hill before him, scattered the generally water-natured shinobi like the prey it longed to hunt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui wasted no time, knowing that fire was at a serious disadvantage in a place like this, and scrambled for the first patch of solid earth he could reach. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As he thrust his hands into the mulch-dampened mud, he could only regret that he hadn't thought to practice this one much either. Something else to remedy if he got out of here intact.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Headhunter jutsu sucked him under and he pushed what little skill with earth he’d managed to wrangle to the very limits. The ground was hard here, soaked in places but also dotted liberally with hard, massive stones and mixed with sand as he pushed onwards to one of the smaller islands a far distance away. Above him, the Mist shinobi swarmed over the beach like a hive, Ao’s unforgettable signature temporarily halted as they worked to quell his flames; the chakra drain from funnelling that technique cut off in jerks and jolts, immediately refocused towards the Headhunter.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He managed to get about half-way across the cove before Ao picked up his trail, shooting after him through the shallows with his subordinates half a step behind him, others sent in various directions to no-doubt try to head him off.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui, in the back of his mind not currently panicking in an incredibly professional manner that guided his motions seamlessly, almost regretted the missed opportunity to witness Ao’s face; with a silent snarl, he thrust his hands above him, through the dirt and sand until they reached the shallow pool of water that flowed with the vaguest current between the closest isles.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Raiton crackled down his arms and electrified the water with savage satisfaction.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Almost every signature went down like a crushed firefly, some (who were more enterprising or skilled) managing to force the electrified water back from them in time to avoid the nasty shock. But it was enough.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was </span>
  <em>
    <span>enough.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shisui pushed more chakra into the charge, a quantity that left him breathless, before yanking his hands back down and rushing to land.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Above ground, the chakra arced from the water like a reversed lightning strike, flashing claws of blinding charge spiking towards the heavens.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ao </span>
  <em>
    <span>howled </span>
  </em>
  <span>in agony, pressing a hand to his activated Byakugan in futile protection against the pulsing light, and staggered backwards to the shore.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>On the other side of the cove, Shisui forced himself free from the embrace of the soil - </span>
  <em>
    <span>don't think about last time, don't think about last time</span>
  </em>
  <span> - out of sight of the beach. He was running worryingly low on chakra now, nothing dangerous or that would prevent a Summoning, but he hadn't expected to have to flee an entire platoon led by a Byakugan in the middle of a foreign village. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His heart was pounding, breath coming hard, but didn't give himself even a moment to rest on the banks of the hill. There was another building here, something vaguely-bunker shaped, so he didn't believe for a moment that he was in the clear from an attack. If he got two more isles over… then… </span>
  <em>
    <span>then</span>
  </em>
  <span> he could Summon Kana and she’d look after him. She’d proven before that snapping a human leg like a twig took only one nip and her talons were longer than his tantō. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He came over the crest at a dead sprint, the mud making the descent on the other side more of a controlled slide than anything else, and Shisui took the moment of inattention to refasten his scarf around his face. So far, all they had was someone - </span>
  <em>
    <span>thank you,</span>
  </em>
  <span> gender-neutral clothing - who knew all five nature types and had a damned-good Shunshin. No one had, after all, gotten close enough to see his own Dojutsu.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His Bingo Book entry only listed his Fire-nature after all. Deliberate, of course.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>(</span>
  <em>
    <span>Fuck </span>
  </em>
  <span>you</span>
  <em>
    <span>, Ao</span>
  </em>
  <span>.)</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He made a break for the trees, always feeling more comfortable with coverage, and circumvented the next rolling hill, one eye latched to the bunker that seemed almost half-swallowed by the bushes either side of it. The ground was spongy and only grew wetter, puddles forming and then swelling until Shisui was once more ankle-deep in murky water and feeling as though he’d never appreciated dry Konohan heat when he’d had the chance. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Behind him, Ao and six signatures - Shisui was absurdly proud of the strength of his Raiton - scurried over the beachfront and made for the hill. Shisui’s legs pounded faster.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>From the map he’d memorised with his Sharingan, he roughly knew where all the little hamlets were located, so, pitching his chances on being spontaneous, Shisui abruptly changed course. The bunker was muted to his senses but he didn't </span>
  <em>
    <span>think</span>
  </em>
  <span> any enemies were lurking around there. He shot off down the side of it, ignoring the way the brambles whipped and tugged at his loose clothes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There was some kind of private beach on the other side, a fair drop from the ragged cliffedge Shisui found himself bearing down on. The bunker, half-buried, was another concrete building but with no windows and nearly fifty-feet in length. The back of it was dangerously close to the edge of the land, something that had probably eroded inwards because he didn't think Kiri builders were quite that stupid about their own territory. Shisui, distracted by the oddly muted sense of the bunker - probably dampening seals, the hypocrites - and Ao’s approach, missed a vital detail of the landscape until it was too late.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He skidded down the bank and landed in the water with barely a stagger and then leapt nearly a foot back up the incline when what exactly he’d bumped into registered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was a body, blood staining the dirty water and bobbing face-down in the shallows.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Fresh</span>
  </em>
  <span>, his mind identified robotically.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Red, spinning eyes flashed around the inlet, counting five similar corpses in total, and another, dragged here judging by the motion of the disturbed sand and the blood. That last one didn't wear the same uniform that the others bore, red hair soaked to a dirty terracotta by the water and mud; their Commanding Officer and things were just looking worse and worse, weren't they?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fuck," Shisui muttered with absolute fervour. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He stepped backwards again. He’d been pretty careful not to outright slaughter the Kiri-nin on his way out - because why fuel the fire? - and he definitely didn't want to shoulder the blame for whatever massacre this was -</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And then a huge sword appeared around the corner of the building and swung straight at his neck.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>A/N- </p><p>Shisui: *is dusty*<br/>Akira: this is not to be borne! You are not fit to be seen! Preen yourself, scoundrel! </p><p>Shisui, as Peter Parker: *crouched in the swamp trying to think of what to do* (~_^)<br/>The Three Crows, as Miles: *crouched watching* (◐∇◐*)( ◐∇◐  )(   ◐ ∇ ◐*   )</p><p>AND</p><p>Arakan, tiny bby, as Peter Parker: *perched trying to find suspicious chakra* (~∇^*)<br/>Shisui, Kana and Akira as Miles: *crouched watching* (◐_◐ )ฅ (◐∇◐ )(   ◐ ∇ ◐*   ) </p><p>Also about shisui’s adventuring and outfits….. Have i been watching The Mandalorian? Yeeeeees haha...ha… OKAY SO WHAT?</p><p>Ao: somethings wrong<br/>Ao: something-<br/>Ao: *eyes narrow behind his eyepatch* Shunshin no Shisui</p><p>Ao's and Shisui's dynamic: one of them dies, the other takes a peace-sign selfie with the headstone… if Ao stubs his toe, it's Shisui he's cursing</p><p>The alarm that goes off sounds like a hurricane siren and it went off because Shisui activating his Mangekyou takes his chakra signature from a normal match-stick to one of those SOS Red Flares and, considering how high alert Kiri is with the political situation, Ao was already paying attention.</p><p>Ao: *sipping his morning tea, looking out over the village*<br/>Shisui: *suddenly seems to burst into being in the centre of the village without warning*<br/>Ao: *spittake* HOLY SHIT *slams the big red disaster button*</p><p>Kiri is a little like Lake Town in the Hobbit and a little like what few pics exist on Narutopedia. I guess...◐.̃◐</p><p>Yay! Shisui has decided to join Kakashi - who has one implanted Sharingan and naturally smaller chakra reserves - as one of the few shinobi able to use every nature type! </p><p>This whole chapter is even funnier if you imagine the scooby doo scramble run noises every time shisui changes direction hahahahaha</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>A/N-</p><p>PART TWO: AIR</p><p>me: I'll post on the 8th!<br/>me, posting on the 6th:.... I almost made it- that counts right?</p><p>You know the drill: if you don't like? Don't read! We all have different tastes and it would be truly ridiculous if I tried to cater the story to every single reader...especially considering that I write for the joy of it….aaaaaand everything is pre-written a few updates ahead…. Rather than waste time complaining in a comment I'll immediately delete, go find a fic you do like!</p><p>please subscribe and comment!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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